Heat conducting substrate for electrically heated aerosol delivery device

ABSTRACT

The present disclosure provides aerosol generating substrates and aerosol source members comprising aerosol generating substrates, as well as methods of manufacturing thereof. In an example implementation, an aerosol generating substrate may comprise a fibrous filler material, an aerosol forming material, and a plurality of heat conducting constituents, wherein the substrate is formed as a sheet, and wherein the heat conducting constituents are part of the sheet. The heat conducting constituents may be incorporated within the sheet, or may be formed on a surface of the sheet. In another example implementation, an aerosol source member may comprise a substrate portion formed of a collection of intermingled pieces cut from an aerosol substrate sheet. In addition, or alternatively, a substrate portion may be formed of a series of overlapping layers of an aerosol substrate sheet.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application is a divisional application of U.S. patent applicationSer. No. 15/905,320, filed on Feb. 26, 2018, which is incorporatedherein in its entirety by reference.

FIELD OF THE DISCLOSURE

The present disclosure relates to aerosol delivery articles and usesthereof for yielding tobacco components or other materials in inhalableform. More particularly, the present disclosure relates to substratematerials and aerosol source members containing substrate materials foraerosol delivery devices and systems, such as smoking articles, thatutilize electrically-generated heat to heat a tobacco or non-tobaccomaterial, preferably without significant combustion, in order to providean inhalable substance in the form of an aerosol for human consumption.

DESCRIPTION OF RELATED ART

Many smoking articles have been proposed through the years asimprovements upon, or alternatives to, smoking products based uponcombusting tobacco. Exemplary alternatives have included devices whereina solid or liquid fuel is combusted to transfer heat to tobacco orwherein a chemical reaction is used to provide such heat source.Examples include the smoking articles described in U.S. Pat. No.9,078,473 to Worm et al., which is incorporated herein by reference inits entirety.

The point of the improvements or alternatives to smoking articlestypically has been to provide the sensations associated with cigarette,cigar, or pipe smoking, without delivering considerable quantities ofincomplete combustion and pyrolysis products. To this end, there havebeen proposed numerous smoking products, flavor generators, andmedicinal inhalers which utilize electrical energy to vaporize or heat avolatile material, or attempt to provide the sensations of cigarette,cigar, or pipe smoking without burning tobacco to a significant degree.See, for example, the various alternative smoking articles, aerosoldelivery devices and heat generating sources set forth in the backgroundart described in U.S. Pat. No. 7,726,320 to Robinson et al.; and U.S.Pat. App. Pub. Nos. 2013/0255702 to Griffith, Jr. et al.; and2014/0096781 to Sears et al., which are incorporated herein by referencein their entireties. See also, for example, the various types of smokingarticles, aerosol delivery devices and electrically powered heatgenerating sources referenced by brand name and commercial source inU.S. Pat. App. Pub. No. 2015/0220232 to Bless et al., which isincorporated herein by reference in its entirety. Additional types ofsmoking articles, aerosol delivery devices and electrically powered heatgenerating sources referenced by brand name and commercial source arelisted in U.S. Pat. App. Pub. No. 2015/0245659 to DePiano et al., whichis also incorporated herein by reference in its entirety. Otherrepresentative cigarettes or smoking articles that have been describedand, in some instances, been made commercially available include thosedescribed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,735,217 to Gerth et al.; U.S. Pat. Nos.4,922,901, 4,947,874, and 4,947,875 to Brooks et al.; U.S. Pat. No.5,060,671 to Counts et al.; U.S. Pat. No. 5,249,586 to Morgan et al.;U.S. Pat. No. 5,388,594 to Counts et al.; U.S. Pat. No. 5,666,977 toHiggins et al.; U.S. Pat. No. 6,053,176 to Adams et al.; U.S. Pat. No.6,164,287 to White; U.S. Pat. No. 6,196,218 to Voges; U.S. Pat. No.6,810,883 to Felter et al.; U.S. Pat. No. 6,854,461 to Nichols; U.S.Pat. No. 7,832,410 to Hon; U.S. Pat. No. 7,513,253 to Kobayashi; U.S.Pat. No. 7,726,320 to Robinson et al.; U.S. Pat. No. 7,896,006 toHamano; U.S. Pat. No. 6,772,756 to Shayan; U.S. Pat. App. Pub. No.2009/0095311 to Hon; U.S. Pat. App. Pub. Nos. 2006/0196518,2009/0126745, and 2009/0188490 to Hon; U.S. Pat. App. Pub. No.2009/0272379 to Thorens et al.; U.S. Pat. App. Pub. Nos. 2009/0260641and 2009/0260642 to Monsees et al.; U.S. Pat. App. Pub. Nos.2008/0149118 and 2010/0024834 to Oglesby et al.; U.S. Pat. App. Pub. No.2010/0307518 to Wang; and PCT Pat. App. Pub. No. WO 2010/091593 to Hon,which are incorporated herein by reference in their entireties.

Representative products that resemble many of the attributes oftraditional types of cigarettes, cigars or pipes have been marketed asACCORD® by Philip Morris Incorporated; ALPHA™, JOYE 510™ and M4™ byInnoVapor LLC; CIRRUS™ and FLING™ by White Cloud Cigarettes; BLU™ byFontem Ventures B.V.; COHITA™, COLIBRI™, ELITE CLASSIC™, MAGNUM™,PHANTOM™ and SENSE™ by EPUFFER International Inc.; DUOPRO™, STORM™ andVAPORKING® by Electronic Cigarettes, Inc.; EGAR™ by Egar Australia;eGo-C™ and eGo-T™ by Joyetech; ELUSION™ by Elusion UK Ltd; EONSMOKE® byEonsmoke LLC; FIN™ by FIN Branding Group, LLC; SMOKE® by Green SmokeInc. USA; GREENARETTE™ by Greenarette LLC; HALLIGAN™ HENDU™ JET™, MAXXQ™PINK™ and PITBULL™ by SMOKE STIK®; HEATBAR™ by Philip MorrisInternational, Inc.; HYDRO IMPERIAL™ and LXE™ from Crown7; LOGIC™ andTHE CUBAN™ by LOGIC Technology; LUCI® by Luciano Smokes Inc.; METRO® byNicotek, LLC; NJOY® and ONEJOY™ by Sottera, Inc.; NO. 7™ by SS ChoiceLLC; PREMIUM ELECTRONIC CIGARETTE™ by PremiumEstore LLC; RAPP E-MYSTICK™by Ruyan America, Inc.; RED DRAGON™ by Red Dragon Products, LLC; RUYAN®by Ruyan Group (Holdings) Ltd.; SF® by Smoker Friendly International,LLC; GREEN SMART SMOKER® by The Smart Smoking Electronic CigaretteCompany Ltd.; SMOKE ASSIST® by Coastline Products LLC; SMOKINGEVERYWHERE® by Smoking Everywhere, Inc.; V2CIGS™ by VMR Products LLC;VAPOR NINE™ by VaporNine LLC; VAPOR4LIFE® by Vapor 4 Life, Inc.; VEPPO™by E-CigaretteDirect, LLC; VUSE® by R. J. Reynolds Vapor Company; MisticMenthol product by Mistic Ecigs; and the Vype product by CN CreativeLtd. Yet other electrically powered aerosol delivery devices, and inparticular those devices that have been characterized as so-calledelectronic cigarettes, have been marketed under the tradenames COOLERVISIONS™; DIRECT E-CIG™; DRAGONFLY™; EMIST™; EVERSMOKE™; GAMUCCI®;HYBRID FLAME™; KNIGHT STICKS™; ROYAL BLUES™; SMOKETIP®; SOUTH BEACHSMOKE™; IQOS™ by Philip Morris International; and GLO™ by BritishAmerican Tobacco.

Articles that produce the taste and sensation of smoking by electricallyheating tobacco, tobacco derived materials, or other plant derivedmaterials have suffered from inconsistent performance characteristics.For example, some articles have suffered from inconsistent release offlavors or other inhalable materials. Accordingly, it can be desirableto provide a smoking article that can provide the sensations ofcigarette, cigar, or pipe smoking, that does so without combusting thesubstrate material, that does so without the need of a combustion heatsource, and that does so with increased performance characteristics.

BRIEF SUMMARY

In various implementations, the present disclosure provides an aerosolgenerating substrate for use in an aerosol source member. In oneimplementation, the substrate may comprise a fibrous filler material, anaerosol forming material, and a plurality of heat conductingconstituents. The substrate may be formed as a sheet, and the heatconducting constituents may be part of the sheet. Some implementationsfurther comprise a binder material. In some implementations, the heatconducting constituents may be incorporated within the sheet. In someimplementations, the heat conducting constituents may be formed on asurface of the sheet. In some implementations, the form of the heatconducting constituents may comprise at least one of a granular form, apowder form, a fiber form, a mesh form, and a fiber cloth form. In someimplementations, the material of the heat conducting constituents maycomprise at least one of a metal material, a metal alloy material, aceramic material, a carbon material, and a polymeric fiber materialcoated with a metal material. In some implementations, the heatconducting constituents may be formed in a segmented pattern. In someimplementations, the segmented pattern may be created using at least oneof printing, laminating, stitching, and selective adhesion. In someimplementations, the plurality of heat conducting constituents maycomprise at least one of a metal mesh laminate and a metal fiber clothlaminate. In some implementations, the fibrous filler material maycomprise at least one of a tobacco material and a tobacco-derivedmaterial. In some implementations, the fibrous filler material comprisesa non-tobacco material. In some implementations, the segmented patternmay be created using a masking template.

Another implementation provides an aerosol source member for use with anaerosol delivery device that may comprise a substrate portion comprisinga fibrous filler material, an aerosol forming material, and a pluralityof heat conducting constituents. The substrate portion may be formed ofa collection of intermingled pieces cut from an initial substrate sheetformed by the fibrous filler material, aerosol forming material, andplurality of heat conducting constituents, and the heat conductingconstituents may be incorporated within the initial substrate sheet. Insome implementations, the substrate portion may further comprise abinder material. In some implementations, the form of the heatconducting constituents in the initial substrate sheet may comprise atleast one of a granular form, a powder form, a fiber form, a mesh form,and a fiber cloth form. In some implementations, the material of theheat conducting constituents in the initial substrate sheet may compriseat least one of a metal material, a metal alloy material, a ceramicmaterial, a carbon material, and a polymeric fiber material coated witha metal material. In some implementations, the plurality of heatconducting constituents may comprise at least one of a metal meshlaminate and a metal fiber cloth laminate. In some implementations, thefibrous filler material of the initial substrate sheet may comprise atleast one of a tobacco material and a tobacco-derived material. In someimplementations, the fibrous filler material of the initial substratesheet may comprise a non-tobacco material.

Another implementation provides an aerosol source member for use with anaerosol delivery device that may comprise a substrate portion comprisinga fibrous filler material, an aerosol forming material, and a pluralityof heat conducting constituents. The substrate portion may be formed ofa series of overlapping layers of an initial substrate sheet formed bythe fibrous filler material, aerosol forming material, and plurality ofheat conducting constituents, and the heat conducting constituents maybe incorporated within the initial substrate sheet. In someimplementations, the substrate portion may further comprise a bindermaterial. In some implementations, the form of the heat conductingconstituents in the initial substrate sheet may comprise at least one ofa granular form, a powder form, a fiber form, a mesh form, and a fibercloth form. In some implementations, the material of the heat conductingconstituents in the initial substrate sheet may comprise at least one ofa metal material, a metal alloy material, a ceramic material, a carbonmaterial, and a polymeric fiber material coated with a metal material.In some implementations, the plurality of heat conducting constituentsmay comprise at least one of a metal mesh laminate and a metal fibercloth laminate. In some implementations, the fibrous filler material inthe initial substrate sheet may comprise at least one of a tobaccomaterial and a tobacco-derived material. In some implementations, thefibrous filler material in the initial substrate sheet may comprise anon-tobacco material.

Another implementation provides an aerosol source member for use with anaerosol delivery device that may comprise a wrap portion, and asubstrate portion comprising a fibrous filler material, an aerosolforming material, and a plurality of heat conducting constituents. Thesubstrate portion may be formed of a collection of intermingled piecescut from an initial sheet formed by the fibrous filler material, aerosolforming material, and plurality of heat conducting constituents, theheat conducting constituents may be incorporated within the initialsubstrate sheet, the wrap portion may comprise an overwrap sheetconfigured to wrap around the substrate portion, and the overwrap sheetmay include a plurality of heat conducting constituents. In someimplementations, the substrate portion may further comprise a bindermaterial. In some implementations, the form of the heat conductingconstituents of the overwrap sheet may comprise at least one of agranular form, a powder form, a fiber form, a mesh form, and a fibercloth form. In some implementations, the material of the heat conductingconstituents of the overwrap sheet may comprise at least one of a metalmaterial, a metal alloy material, a ceramic material, a carbon material,and a polymeric fiber material coated with a metal material. In someimplementations, the plurality of heat conducting constituents of thesubstrate portion may comprise at least one of a metal mesh laminate anda metal fiber cloth laminate. In some implementations, the fibrousfiller material in the initial substrate sheet may comprise a tobacco ortobacco-derived material. In some implementation, the fibrous fillermaterial in the initial substrate sheet may comprise a non-tobaccomaterial.

Another implementation provides an aerosol source member for use with anaerosol delivery device that may comprise a wrap portion, and asubstrate portion comprising a fibrous filler material, an aerosolforming material, and a plurality of heat conducting constituents. Thesubstrate portion may be formed of a series of overlapping layers of asheet formed by the fibrous filler material, aerosol forming material,and plurality of heat conducting constituents, the heat conductingconstituents may be incorporated within the sheet, the wrap portion maycomprise an overwrap sheet configured to wrap around the substrateportion, and the overwrap sheet may include a plurality of heatconducting constituents. In some implementations, the substrate portionmay further comprise a binder material. In some implementations, theform of the heat conducting constituents of the overwrap sheet maycomprise at least one of a granular form, a powder form, a fiber form, amesh form, and a fiber cloth form. In some implementation, the materialof the heat conducting constituents of the overwrap sheet may compriseat least one of a metal material, a metal alloy material, a ceramicmaterial, a carbon material, and a polymeric fiber material coated witha metal material. In some implementations, the plurality of heatconducting constituents of the substrate portion may comprise at leastone of a metal mesh laminate or a metal fiber cloth laminate. In someimplementations, the fibrous filler material in the initial substratesheet may comprise at least one of a tobacco material and atobacco-derived material. In some implementations, the fibrous fillermaterial in the initial substrate sheet may comprise a non-tobaccomaterial.

Another implementation provides an aerosol source member for use with aninduction heated aerosol delivery device having a resonant transmitter.In one implementation, the aerosol source member may comprise asubstrate portion comprising a fibrous filler material, an aerosolforming material, and a plurality of heat conducting constituents. Thesubstrate portion may be formed of a collection of intermingled piecescut from an initial substrate sheet formed by the fibrous fillermaterial, aerosol forming material, and plurality of heat conductingconstituents, the heat conducting constituents may be incorporatedwithin the initial substrate sheet, and the plurality of heat conductingconstituents may comprise a resonant receiver configured to exhibit analternating current when exposed to an oscillating magnetic field fromthe resonant transmitter. In some implementations, the substrate portionmay further comprise a binder material. In some implementations, theform of the heat conducting constituents may comprise at least one of agranular form, a powder form, a fiber form, a mesh form, and a fibercloth form. In some implementations, the material of the heat conductingconstituents may comprise at least one of a metal material, a metalalloy material, a ceramic material, a carbon material, and a polymericfiber material coated with a metal material. In some implementations,the plurality of heat conducting constituents may comprise at least oneof a metal mesh laminate and a metal fiber cloth laminate. In someimplementations, the fibrous filler material may comprise at least oneof a tobacco material and a tobacco-derived material. In someimplementations, the fibrous filler material may comprise a non-tobaccomaterial.

Another implementation provides an aerosol source member for use with aninduction heated aerosol delivery device having a resonant transmitter.In one implementation, the aerosol source member may comprise asubstrate portion comprising a fibrous filler material, an aerosolforming material, and a plurality of heat conducting constituents. Thesubstrate portion may be formed of a series of overlapping layers of aninitial substrate sheet formed by the fibrous filler material, aerosolforming material, and plurality of heat conducting constituents, theheat conducting constituents may be incorporated within the initialsubstrate sheet, and the plurality of heat conducting constituents maycomprise a resonant receiver configured to exhibit an alternatingcurrent when exposed to an oscillating magnetic field from the resonanttransmitter. In some implementations, the substrate portion may furthercomprise a binder material. In some implementations, the form of theheat conducting constituents may comprise at least one of a granularform, a powder form, a fiber form, a mesh form, and a fiber cloth form.In some implementations, the material of the heat conductingconstituents may comprise at least one of a metal material, a metalalloy material, a ceramic material, a carbon material, and a polymericfiber material coated with a metal material. In some implementations,the plurality of heat conducting constituents may comprise at least oneof a metal mesh laminate and a metal fiber cloth laminate. In someimplementations, the fibrous filler material in the initial substratesheet may comprise at least one of a tobacco material or atobacco-derived material. In some implementations, the fibrous fillermaterial in the initial substrate sheet may comprise a non-tobaccomaterial.

Another implementation provides an aerosol source member for use with aninduction heated aerosol delivery device having a resonant transmitter.In one implementation, the aerosol source member may comprise asubstrate portion comprising a fibrous filler material, an aerosolforming material, and a plurality of heat conducting constituents. Thesubstrate portion may be formed of a collection of granules formed by anextruded and spheronized mixture of the fibrous filler material, aerosolforming material, and plurality of heat conducting constituents, and theplurality of heat conducting constituents may comprise a resonantreceiver configured to exhibit an alternating current when exposed to anoscillating magnetic field from the resonant transmitter. In someimplementations, the substrate portion may further comprise a bindermaterial. In some implementations, the form of the heat conductingconstituents may comprise at least one of a granular form, a powderform, a fiber form, a mesh form, and a fiber cloth form. In someimplementations, the material of the heat conducting constituents maycomprise at least one of a metal material, a metal alloy material, aceramic material, a carbon material, and a polymeric fiber materialcoated with a metal material. In some implementations, the plurality ofheat conducting constituents may comprise at least one of a metal meshlaminate and a metal fiber cloth laminate. In some implementations, thefibrous filler material may comprise at least one of a tobacco materialand a tobacco-derived material. In some implementations, the fibrousfiller material may comprise a non-tobacco material.

Another implementation provides a method of manufacturing an aerosolgenerating substrate for use in an aerosol source member. In oneimplementation, the method may comprise providing a fibrous fillermaterial, an aerosol forming material, and a plurality of heatconducting constituents, and forming a substrate sheet using the fibrousfiller material, the aerosol forming material, and the plurality of heatconducting constituents. The heat conducting constituents may be part ofthe substrate sheet. Some implementations may further comprise providinga binder material, and the step of forming the substrate sheet mayfurther comprise using the binder material. In some implementations, theheat conducting constituents may be incorporated within the substratesheet. In some implementations, the heat conducting constituents may beformed on a surface of the substrate sheet. In some implementations, theform of the heat conducting constituents may comprise at least one of agranular form, a powder form, a fiber form, a mesh form, and a fibercloth form. In some implementations, the material of the heat conductingconstituents may comprise at least one of a metal material, a metalalloy material, a ceramic material, a carbon material, and a polymericfiber material coated with a metal material. In some implementations,the heat conducting constituents may be formed in a segmented pattern.In some implementations, the segmented pattern may be created using atleast one of printing, laminating, stitching, and selective adhesion. Insome implementations, the plurality of heat conducting constituents maycomprise at least one of a metal mesh laminate and a metal fiber clothlaminate. In some implementations, the fibrous filler material maycomprise at least one of a tobacco material and a tobacco-derivedmaterial. In some implementations, the fibrous filler material maycomprise a non-tobacco material. In some implementations, the segmentedpattern may be created using a masking template.

Another implementation provides a method of manufacturing an aerosolsource member for use with an aerosol delivery device. In oneimplementation, the method may comprise forming an initial substratesheet comprising a fibrous filler material, an aerosol forming material,and a plurality of heat conducting constituents, wherein the heatconducting constituents are incorporated within the initial substratesheet, cutting the initial substrate sheet into a plurality of pieces,forming a collection of intermingled pieces from the plurality of piecesof the initial substrate sheet, and forming a substrate portion usingthe collection of intermingled pieces. In some implementations, theinitial substrate sheet may further comprise a binder material. In someimplementations, the form of the heat conducting constituents in theinitial substrate sheet may comprise at least one of a granular form, apowder form, a fiber form, a mesh form, and a fiber cloth form. In someimplementations, the material of the heat conducting constituents in theinitial substrate sheet may comprise at least one of a metal material, ametal alloy material, a ceramic material, a carbon material, and apolymeric fiber material coated with a metal material. In someimplementations, the plurality of heat conducting constituents maycomprise at least one of a metal mesh laminate and a metal fiber clothlaminate. In some implementations, the fibrous filler material of theinitial substrate sheet may comprise at least one of a tobacco materialand a tobacco-derived material. In some implementations, the fibrousfiller material of the initial substrate sheet may comprise anon-tobacco material.

Another implementation provides a method of manufacturing an aerosolsource member for use with an aerosol delivery device. In oneimplementation, the method may comprise forming an initial substratesheet comprising a fibrous filler material, an aerosol forming material,and a plurality of heat conducting constituents, wherein the heatconducting constituents are incorporated within the initial substratesheet, overlapping a plurality of layers of the initial substrate sheet,and forming a substrate portion using the overlapping layers. In someimplementations, the initial substrate sheet may further comprise abinder material. In some implementations, the form of the heatconducting constituents in the initial substrate sheet may comprise atleast one of a granular form, a powder form, a fiber form, a mesh form,and a fiber cloth form. In some implementations, the material of theheat conducting constituents in the initial substrate sheet may compriseat least one of a metal material, a metal alloy material, a ceramicmaterial, a carbon material, and a polymeric fiber material coated witha metal material. In some implementations, the plurality of heatconducting constituents may comprise at least one of a metal meshlaminate and a metal fiber cloth laminate. In some implementations, thefibrous filler material in the initial substrate sheet may comprise atleast one of a tobacco material and a tobacco-derived material. In someimplementations, the fibrous filler material in the initial substratesheet may comprise a non-tobacco material.

Another implementation provides a method of forming an aerosol sourcemember for use with an aerosol delivery device. In one implementation,the method may comprise forming an initial substrate sheet comprising afibrous filler material, an aerosol forming material, and a plurality ofheat conducting constituents, wherein the heat conducting constituentsare incorporated within the initial substrate sheet, cutting the initialsubstrate sheet into a plurality of pieces, forming a collection ofintermingled pieces from the plurality of pieces of the initialsubstrate sheet, forming a substrate portion using the collection ofintermingled pieces, and forming a wrap portion. The wrap portion maycomprise an overwrap sheet configured to wrap around the substrateportion, and the overwrap sheet may include a plurality of heatconducting constituents. In some implementations, the initial substratesheet may further comprise a binder material. In some implementations,the form of the heat conducting constituents of the overwrap sheet maycomprise at least one of a granular form, a powder form, a fiber form, amesh form, and a fiber cloth form. In some implementations, the materialof the heat conducting constituents of the overwrap sheet may compriseat least one of a metal material, a metal alloy material, a ceramicmaterial, a carbon material, and a polymeric fiber material coated witha metal material. In some implementations, the plurality of heatconducting constituents of the substrate portion may comprise at leastone of a metal mesh laminate and a metal fiber cloth laminate. In someimplementations, the fibrous filler material in the initial substratesheet may comprise at least one of a tobacco material and atobacco-derived material. In some implementations, the fibrous fillermaterial in the initial substrate sheet may comprise a non-tobaccomaterial.

Another implementation provides a method of manufacturing an aerosolsource member for use with an aerosol delivery device. In oneimplementation, the method may comprise forming an initial substratesheet comprising a fibrous filler material, an aerosol forming material,and a plurality of heat conducting constituents, wherein the heatconducting constituents are incorporated within the initial substratesheet, overlapping a plurality of layers of the initial substrate sheet,forming a substrate portion using the overlapping layers, and forming awrap portion. The wrap portion may comprise an overwrap sheet configuredto wrap around the substrate portion, and the overwrap sheet may includea plurality of heat conducting constituents. In some implementations,the initial substrate sheet may further comprise a binder material. Insome implementations, the form of the heat conducting constituents ofthe overwrap sheet may comprise at least one of a granular form, apowder form, a fiber form, a mesh form, and a fiber cloth form. In someimplementations, the material of the heat conducting constituents of theoverwrap sheet may comprise at least one of a metal material, a metalalloy material, a ceramic material, a carbon material, and a polymericfiber material coated with a metal material. In some implementations,the plurality of heat conducting constituents may comprise at least oneof a metal mesh laminate and a metal fiber cloth laminate. In someimplementations, the fibrous filler material in the initial substratesheet may comprise a tobacco or tobacco-derived material. In someimplementations, the fibrous filler material in the initial substratesheet may comprise a non-tobacco material.

Another implementation provides a method of manufacturing an aerosolsource member for use with an induction heated aerosol delivery devicehaving a resonant transmitter. In one implementation, the method maycomprise forming an initial substrate sheet comprising a fibrous fillermaterial, an aerosol forming material, and a plurality of heatconducting constituents, wherein the heat conducting constituents areincorporated within the initial substrate sheet, cutting the initialsubstrate sheet into a plurality of pieces, forming a collection ofintermingled pieces from the plurality of pieces of the initialsubstrate sheet, and forming a substrate portion using the collection ofintermingled pieces. The plurality of heat conducting constituents maycomprise a resonant receiver configured to exhibit an alternatingcurrent when exposed to an oscillating magnetic field from the resonanttransmitter. In some implementations, the initial substrate sheet mayfurther comprise a binder material. In some implementations, the form ofthe heat conducting constituents may comprise at least one of a granularform, a powder form, a fiber form, a mesh form, and a fiber cloth form.In some implementations, the material of the heat conductingconstituents may comprise at least one of a metal material, a metalalloy material, a ceramic material, a carbon material, and a polymericfiber material coated with a metal material. In some implementations,the plurality of heat conducting constituents may comprise at least oneof a metal mesh laminate and a metal fiber cloth laminate. In someimplementations, the fibrous filler material may comprise a tobacco ortobacco-derived material. In some implementations, the fibrous fillermaterial may comprise a non-tobacco material.

Another implementation provides a method of manufacturing an aerosolsource member for use with an induction heated aerosol delivery devicehaving a resonant transmitter. In one implementation, the methodcomprises forming an initial substrate sheet comprising a fibrous fillermaterial, an aerosol forming material, and a plurality of heatconducting constituents, wherein the heat conducting constituents areincorporated within the initial substrate sheet, overlapping a pluralityof layers of the initial substrate sheet, and forming a substrateportion using the overlapping layers. The plurality of heat conductingconstituents may comprise a resonant receiver configured to exhibit analternating current when exposed to an oscillating magnetic field fromthe resonant transmitter. In some implementations, the initial substratesheet may further comprise a binder material. In some implementations,the form of the heat conducting constituents may comprise at least oneof a granular form, a powder form, a fiber form, a mesh form, and afiber cloth form. In some implementations, the material of the heatconducting constituents may comprise at least one of a metal material, ametal alloy material, a ceramic material, a carbon material, and apolymeric fiber material coated with a metal material. In someimplementations, the plurality of heat conducting constituents maycomprise at least one of a metal mesh laminate and a metal fiber clothlaminate. In some implementations, the fibrous filler material in theinitial substrate sheet may comprise a tobacco or tobacco-derivedmaterial. In some implementations, the fibrous filler material in theinitial substrate sheet may comprise a non-tobacco material.

Another implementation provides a method of manufacturing an aerosolsource member for use with an induction heated aerosol delivery devicehaving a resonant transmitter. In one implementation, the method maycomprise forming a mixture comprising a fibrous filler material, anaerosol forming material, and a plurality of heat conductingconstituents, extruding and spheronizing the mixture into a plurality ofgranules, forming a collection of the granules; and forming substrateportion using the collection of granules. The plurality of heatconducting constituents may comprise a resonant receiver configured toexhibit an alternating current when exposed to an oscillating magneticfield from the resonant transmitter. In some implementations, themixture may further comprise a binder material. In some implementations,the form of the heat conducting constituents may comprise at least oneof a granular form, a powder form, a fiber form, a mesh form, and afiber cloth form. In some implementations, the material of the heatconducting constituents may comprise at least one of a metal material, ametal alloy material, a ceramic material, a carbon material, and apolymeric fiber material coated with a metal material. In someimplementations, the plurality of heat conducting constituents maycomprise at least one of a metal mesh laminate and a metal fiber clothlaminate. In some implementations, the fibrous filler material maycomprise a tobacco or tobacco-derived material. In some implementations,the fibrous filler material may comprise a non-tobacco material.

These and other features, aspects, and advantages of the disclosure willbe apparent from a reading of the following detailed descriptiontogether with the accompanying drawings, which are briefly describedbelow.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE FIGURES

Having thus described aspects of the disclosure in the foregoing generalterms, reference will now be made to the accompanying drawings, whichare not necessarily drawn to scale, and wherein:

FIG. 1 illustrates a perspective view of an aerosol delivery devicecomprising a control body and an aerosol source member, wherein theaerosol source member and the control body are coupled to one anotheraccording to an example implementation of the present disclosure;

FIG. 2 illustrates a perspective view of the aerosol delivery device ofFIG. 1 wherein the aerosol source member and the control body aredecoupled from one another according to an example implementation of thepresent disclosure;

FIG. 3 illustrates a perspective view of an aerosol source memberaccording to an example implementation of the disclosure;

FIG. 4 illustrates a schematic drawing of a substrate sheet according toan example implementation of the present disclosure;

FIG. 5 illustrates a schematic drawing of a substrate sheet according toan example implementation of the present disclosure;

FIG. 6 illustrates a schematic drawing of an aerosol source memberaccording to an example implementation of the present disclosure;

FIG. 7 illustrates a schematic drawing of an aerosol source memberaccording to an example implementation of the present disclosure;

FIG. 8 illustrates a schematic drawing of an aerosol source memberaccording to an example implementation of the present disclosure;

FIG. 9 illustrates a schematic drawing of an aerosol source memberaccording to an example implementation of the present disclosure;

FIG. 10 illustrates various operations in a method of manufacturing anaerosol generating substrate for use in an aerosol source memberaccording to an example implementation of the present disclosure;

FIG. 11 illustrates various operations in a method of manufacturing anaerosol source member for use with an aerosol source delivery deviceaccording to an example implementation of the present disclosure;

FIG. 12 illustrates various operations in a method of manufacturing anaerosol source member for use with an aerosol source delivery deviceaccording to an example implementation of the present disclosure;

FIG. 13 illustrates various operations in a method of manufacturing anaerosol source member for use with an aerosol source delivery deviceaccording to an example implementation of the present disclosure;

FIG. 14 illustrates a schematic drawing of a substrate sheet accordingto an example implementation of the present disclosure;

FIG. 15 illustrates a schematic drawing of an aerosol source memberaccording to an example implementation of the present disclosure; and

FIG. 16 illustrates a schematic drawing of an aerosol source memberaccording to an example implementation of the present disclosure.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

The present disclosure will now be described more fully hereinafter withreference to example implementations thereof. These exampleimplementations are described so that this disclosure will be thoroughand complete, and will fully convey the scope of the disclosure to thoseskilled in the art. Indeed, the disclosure may be embodied in manydifferent forms and should not be construed as limited to theimplementations set forth herein; rather, these implementations areprovided so that this disclosure will satisfy applicable legalrequirements. As used in the specification and the appended claims, thesingular forms “a,” “an,” “the” and the like include plural referentsunless the context clearly dictates otherwise. Also, while reference maybe made herein to quantitative measures, values, geometric relationshipsor the like, unless otherwise stated, any one or more if not all ofthese may be absolute or approximate to account for acceptablevariations that may occur, such as those due to engineering tolerancesor the like.

As described hereinafter, example implementations of the presentdisclosure relate to aerosol generating substrates for use in an aerosolsource members and aerosol source members for use with aerosol deliverydevices. Aerosol delivery devices according to the present disclosureuse electrical energy to heat a material (preferably without combustingthe material to any significant degree) to form an inhalable substance;and components of such systems have the form of articles that aresufficiently compact to be considered hand-held devices. That is, use ofcomponents of preferred aerosol delivery devices does not result in theproduction of smoke in the sense that aerosol results principally fromby-products of combustion or pyrolysis of tobacco, but rather, use ofthose preferred systems results in the production of vapors resultingfrom volatilization or vaporization of certain components incorporatedtherein. In some example implementations, components of aerosol deliverydevices may be characterized as electronic cigarettes, and thoseelectronic cigarettes most preferably incorporate tobacco and/orcomponents derived from tobacco, and hence deliver tobacco derivedcomponents in aerosol form.

Aerosol generating components of certain preferred aerosol deliverydevices may provide many of the sensations (e.g., inhalation andexhalation rituals, types of tastes or flavors, organoleptic effects,physical feel, use rituals, visual cues such as those provided byvisible aerosol, and the like) of smoking a cigarette, cigar or pipethat is employed by lighting and burning tobacco (and hence inhalingtobacco smoke), without any substantial degree of combustion of anycomponent thereof. For example, the user of an aerosol delivery devicein accordance with some example implementations of the presentdisclosure can hold and use that component much like a smoker employs atraditional type of smoking article, draw on one end of that piece forinhalation of aerosol produced by that piece, take or draw puffs atselected intervals of time, and the like.

While the systems are generally described herein in terms ofimplementations associated with aerosol delivery devices such asso-called “e-cigarettes” or “tobacco heating products,” it should beunderstood that the mechanisms, components, features, and methods may beembodied in many different forms and associated with a variety ofarticles. For example, the description provided herein may be employedin conjunction with implementations of traditional smoking articles(e.g., cigarettes, cigars, pipes, etc.), heat-not-burn cigarettes, andrelated packaging for any of the products disclosed herein. Accordingly,it should be understood that the description of the mechanisms,components, features, and methods disclosed herein are discussed interms of implementations relating to aerosol delivery devices by way ofexample only, and may be embodied and used in various other products andmethods.

Aerosol delivery devices of the present disclosure may also becharacterized as being vapor-producing articles or medicament deliveryarticles. Thus, such articles or devices may be adapted so as to provideone or more substances (e.g., flavors and/or pharmaceutical activeingredients) in an inhalable form or state. For example, inhalablesubstances may be substantially in the form of a vapor (i.e., asubstance that is in the gas phase at a temperature lower than itscritical point). Alternatively, inhalable substances may be in the formof an aerosol (i.e., a suspension of fine solid particles or liquiddroplets in a gas). For purposes of simplicity, the term “aerosol” asused herein is meant to include vapors, gases and aerosols of a form ortype suitable for human inhalation, whether or not visible, and whetheror not of a form that might be considered to be smoke-like. The physicalform of the inhalable substance is not necessarily limited by the natureof the inventive devices but rather may depend upon the nature of themedium and the inhalable substance itself as to whether it exists in avapor state or an aerosol state. In some implementations, the terms maybe interchangeable. Thus, for simplicity, the terms as used to describeaspects of the disclosure are understood to be interchangeable unlessstated otherwise.

Aerosol delivery devices of the present disclosure generally include anumber of components provided within an outer body or shell, which maybe referred to as a housing. The overall design of the outer body orshell may vary, and the format or configuration of the outer body thatmay define the overall size and shape of the aerosol delivery device mayvary. Typically, an elongated body resembling the shape of a cigaretteor cigar may be a formed from a single, unitary housing or the elongatedhousing can be formed of two or more separable bodies. For example, anaerosol delivery device may comprise an elongated shell or body that maybe substantially tubular in shape and, as such, resemble the shape of aconventional cigarette or cigar. In one example, all of the componentsof the aerosol delivery device are contained within one housing.Alternatively, an aerosol delivery device may comprise two or morehousings that are joined and are separable. For example, an aerosoldelivery device may possess at one end a control body comprising ahousing containing one or more reusable components (e.g., an accumulatorsuch as a rechargeable battery and/or rechargeable supercapacitor, andvarious electronics for controlling the operation of that article), andat the other end and removably coupleable thereto, an outer body orshell containing a disposable portion (e.g., a disposableflavor-containing aerosol source member). More specific formats,configurations and arrangements of components within the single housingtype of unit or within a multi-piece separable housing type of unit willbe evident in light of the further disclosure provided herein.Additionally, various aerosol delivery device designs and componentarrangements may be appreciated upon consideration of the commerciallyavailable electronic aerosol delivery devices.

As will be discussed in more detail below, aerosol delivery devices ofthe present disclosure comprise some combination of a power source(i.e., an electrical power source), at least one control component(e.g., means for actuating, controlling, regulating and ceasing powerfor heat generation, such as by controlling electrical current flow fromthe power source to other components of the article—e.g., amicroprocessor, individually or as part of a microcontroller), a heateror heat generation member (e.g., an electrical resistance heatingelement or other component and/or an inductive coil or other associatedcomponents and/or one or more radiant heating elements), and an aerosolsource member that includes a substrate portion capable of yielding anaerosol upon application of sufficient heat. In various implementations,the aerosol source member may include a mouth end or tip configured toallow drawing upon the aerosol delivery device for aerosol inhalation(e.g., a defined airflow path through the article such that aerosolgenerated can be withdrawn therefrom upon draw).

Alignment of the components within the aerosol delivery device of thepresent disclosure may vary across various implementations. In someimplementations, the substrate material may be positioned proximate aheating element so as to maximize aerosol delivery to the user. Otherconfigurations, however, are not excluded. Generally, the heatingelement may be positioned sufficiently near the substrate material sothat heat from the heating element can volatilize the substrate material(as well as, in some implementations, one or more flavorants,medicaments, or the like that may likewise be provided for delivery to auser) and form an aerosol for delivery to the user. When the heatingelement heats the substrate material, an aerosol is formed, released, orgenerated in a physical form suitable for inhalation by a consumer. Itshould be noted that the foregoing terms are meant to be interchangeablesuch that reference to release, releasing, releases, or releasedincludes form or generate, forming or generating, forms or generates,and formed or generated. Specifically, an inhalable substance isreleased in the form of a vapor or aerosol or mixture thereof, whereinsuch terms are also interchangeably used herein except where otherwisespecified.

As noted above, the aerosol delivery device of various implementationsmay incorporate a battery and/or other electrical power source toprovide current flow sufficient to provide various functionalities tothe aerosol delivery device, such as powering of a heating element,powering of control systems, powering of indicators, and the like. Aswill be discussed in more detail below, the power source may take onvarious implementations. Preferably, the power source may be able todeliver sufficient power to rapidly activate the heating member toprovide for aerosol formation and power the aerosol delivery devicethrough use for a desired duration of time. The power source ispreferably sized to fit conveniently within the aerosol delivery deviceso that the aerosol delivery device can be easily handled. Examples ofuseful power sources include lithium-ion batteries that are preferablyrechargeable (e.g., a rechargeable lithium-manganese dioxide battery).In particular, lithium polymer batteries can be used as such batteriescan provide increased safety. Other types of batteries—e.g., N50-AAACADNICA nickel-cadmium cells—may also be used. Additionally, a preferredpower source is of a sufficiently light weight to not detract from adesirable smoking experience. Some examples of possible power sourcesare described in U.S. Pat. No. 9,484,155 to Peckerar et al., and U.S.Pat. App. Pub. No. 2017/0112191 to Sur et al., filed Oct. 21, 2015, thedisclosures of which are incorporated herein by reference in theirrespective entireties.

In further implementations, the power source may also comprise acapacitor. Capacitors are capable of discharging more quickly thanbatteries and can be charged between puffs, allowing the battery todischarge into the capacitor at a lower rate than if it were used topower the heating member directly. For example, a supercapacitor—e.g.,an electric double-layer capacitor (EDLC)—may be used separate from orin combination with a battery. When used alone, the supercapacitor maybe recharged before each use of the article. Thus, the device may alsoinclude a charger component that can be attached to the smoking articlebetween uses to replenish the supercapacitor.

Further components may be utilized in the aerosol delivery device of thepresent disclosure. For example, the aerosol delivery device may includea flow sensor that is sensitive either to pressure changes or air flowchanges as the consumer draws on the article (e.g., a puff-actuatedswitch). Other possible current actuation/deactuation mechanisms mayinclude a temperature actuated on/off switch or a lip pressure actuatedswitch. An example mechanism that can provide such puff-actuationcapability includes a Model 163PC01D36 silicon sensor, manufactured bythe MicroSwitch division of Honeywell, Inc., Freeport, Ill.Representative flow sensors, current regulating components, and othercurrent controlling components including various microcontrollers,sensors, and switches for aerosol delivery devices are described in U.S.Pat. No. 4,735,217 to Gerth et al., U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,922,901, 4,947,874,and 4,947,875, all to Brooks et al., U.S. Pat. No. 5,372,148 toMcCafferty et al., U.S. Pat. No. 6,040,560 to Fleischhauer et al., U.S.Pat. No. 7,040,314 to Nguyen et al., and U.S. Pat. No. 8,205,622 to Pan,all of which are incorporated herein by reference in their entireties.Reference also is made to the control schemes described in U.S. Pat. No.9,423,152 to Ampolini et al., which is incorporated herein by referencein its entirety.

In another example, a personal vaporizer unit may comprise a firstconductive surface configured to contact a first body part of a userholding the personal vaporizer unit, and a second conductive surface,conductively isolated from the first conductive surface, configured tocontact a second body part of the user. As such, when the personalvaporizer unit detects a change in conductivity between the firstconductive surface and the second conductive surface, a vaporizer isactivated to vaporize a substance so that the vapors may be inhaled bythe user holding unit. The first body part and the second body part maybe a lip or parts of a hand(s). The two conductive surfaces may also beused to charge a battery contained in the personal vaporizer unit. Thetwo conductive surfaces may also form, or be part of, a connector thatmay be used to output data stored in a memory. Reference is made to U.S.Pat. No. 9,861,773 to Terry et al., which is incorporated herein byreference in its entirety.

In addition, U.S. Pat. No. 5,154,192 to Sprinkel et al. disclosesindicators for smoking articles; U.S. Pat. No. 5,261,424 to Sprinkel,Jr. discloses piezoelectric sensors that can be associated with themouth-end of a device to detect user lip activity associated with takinga draw and then trigger heating of a heating device; U.S. Pat. No.5,372,148 to McCafferty et al. discloses a puff sensor for controllingenergy flow into a heating load array in response to pressure dropthrough a mouthpiece; U.S. Pat. No. 5,967,148 to Harris et al. disclosesreceptacles in a smoking device that include an identifier that detectsa non-uniformity in infrared transmissivity of an inserted component anda controller that executes a detection routine as the component isinserted into the receptacle; U.S. Pat. No. 6,040,560 to Fleischhauer etal. describes a defined executable power cycle with multipledifferential phases; U.S. Pat. No. 5,934,289 to Watkins et al. disclosesphotonic-optronic components; U.S. Pat. No. 5,954,979 to Counts et al.discloses means for altering draw resistance through a smoking device;U.S. Pat. No. 6,803,545 to Blake et al. discloses specific batteryconfigurations for use in smoking devices; U.S. Pat. No. 7,293,565 toGriffen et al. discloses various charging systems for use with smokingdevices; U.S. Pat. No. 8,402,976 to Fernando et al. discloses computerinterfacing means for smoking devices to facilitate charging and allowcomputer control of the device; U.S. Pat. No. 8,689,804 to Fernando etal. discloses identification systems for smoking devices; and PCT Pat.App. Pub. No. WO 2010/003480 by Flick discloses a fluid flow sensingsystem indicative of a puff in an aerosol generating system; all of theforegoing disclosures being incorporated herein by reference in theirentireties.

Further examples of components related to electronic aerosol deliveryarticles and disclosing materials or components that may be used in thepresent device include U.S. Pat. No. 4,735,217 to Gerth et al.; U.S.Pat. No. 5,249,586 to Morgan et al.; U.S. Pat. No. 5,666,977 to Higginset al.; U.S. Pat. No. 6,053,176 to Adams et al.; U.S. Pat. No. 6,164,287to White; U.S. Pat. No. 6,196,218 to Voges; U.S. Pat. No. 6,810,883 toFelter et al.; U.S. Pat. No. 6,854,461 to Nichols; U.S. Pat. No.7,832,410 to Hon; U.S. Pat. No. 7,513,253 to Kobayashi; U.S. Pat. No.7,896,006 to Hamano; U.S. Pat. No. 6,772,756 to Shayan; U.S. Pat. Nos.8,156,944 and 8,375,957 to Hon; U.S. Pat. No. 8,794,231 to Thorens etal.; U.S. Pat. No. 8,851,083 to Oglesby et al.; U.S. Pat. Nos. 8,915,254and 8,925,555 to Monsees et al.; U.S. Pat. No. 9,220,302 to DePiano etal.; U.S. Pat. App. Pub. Nos. 2006/0196518 and 2009/0188490 to Hon; U.S.Pat. App. Pub. No. 2010/0024834 to Oglesby et al.; U.S. Pat. App. Pub.No. 2010/0307518 to Wang; PCT Pat. App. Pub. No. WO 2010/091593 to Hon;and PCT Pat. App. Pub. No. WO 2013/089551 to Foo, each of which isincorporated herein by reference in its entirety. Further, U.S. Pat.App. Pub. No. 2017/0099877 to Worm et al., filed Oct. 13, 2015,discloses capsules that may be included in aerosol delivery devices andfob-shape configurations for aerosol delivery devices, and isincorporated herein by reference in its entirety. A variety of thematerials disclosed by the foregoing documents may be incorporated intothe present devices in various implementations, and all of the foregoingdisclosures are incorporated herein by reference in their entireties.

More specific formats, configurations and arrangements of varioussubstrate materials, aerosol source members, and components withinaerosol delivery devices of the present disclosure will be evident inlight of the further disclosure provided hereinafter. Additionally, theselection of various aerosol delivery device components may beappreciated upon consideration of the commercially available electronicaerosol delivery devices. Further, the arrangement of the componentswithin the aerosol delivery device may also be appreciated uponconsideration of the commercially available electronic aerosol deliverydevices.

In this regard, FIG. 1 illustrates an aerosol delivery device 100according to an example implementation of the present disclosure. Theaerosol delivery device 100 may include a control body 102 and anaerosol source member 104. In various implementations, the aerosolsource member 104 and the control body 102 may be permanently ordetachably aligned in a functioning relationship. In this regard, FIG. 1illustrates the aerosol delivery device 100 in a coupled configuration,whereas FIG. 2 illustrates the aerosol delivery device 100 in adecoupled configuration. Various mechanisms may connect the aerosolsource member 104 to the control body 102 to result in a threadedengagement, a press-fit engagement, an interference fit, a sliding fit,a magnetic engagement, or the like.

In various implementations, the aerosol delivery device 100 according tothe present disclosure may have a variety of overall shapes, including,but not limited to an overall shape that may be defined as beingsubstantially rod-like or substantially tubular shaped or substantiallycylindrically shaped. In the implementations of FIGS. 1-3, the device100 has a substantially round cross-section; however, othercross-sectional shapes (e.g., oval, square, triangle, etc.) also areencompassed by the present disclosure. Such language that is descriptiveof the physical shape of the article may also be applied to theindividual components thereof, including the control body 102 and theaerosol source member 104. In other implementations, the control bodymay take another hand-held shape, such as a small box shape.

In specific implementations, one or both of the control body 102 and theaerosol source member 104 may be referred to as being disposable or asbeing reusable. For example, the control body 102 may have a replaceablebattery or a rechargeable battery, solid-state battery, thin-filmsolid-state battery, rechargeable supercapacitor or the like, and thusmay be combined with any type of recharging technology, includingconnection to a wall charger, connection to a car charger (i.e.,cigarette lighter receptacle), and connection to a computer, such asthrough a universal serial bus (USB) cable or connector (e.g., USB 2.0,3.0, 3.1, USB Type-C), connection to a photovoltaic cell (sometimesreferred to as a solar cell) or solar panel of solar cells, a wirelesscharger, such as a charger that uses inductive wireless charging(including for example, wireless charging according to the Qi wirelesscharging standard from the Wireless Power Consortium (WPC)), or awireless radio frequency (RF) based charger. An example of an inductivewireless charging system is described in U.S. Pat. App. Pub. No.2017/0112196 to Sur et al., which is incorporated herein by reference inits entirety. Further, in some implementations, the aerosol sourcemember 104 may comprise a single-use device. A single use component foruse with a control body is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 8,910,639 to Changet al., which is incorporated herein by reference in its entirety.

In the depicted implementation, the aerosol source member 104 comprisesa heated end 106, which is configured to be inserted into the controlbody 102, and a mouth end 108, upon which a user draws to create theaerosol. At least a portion of the heated end 106 may include asubstrate portion 110. As discussed in more detail below, in someimplementations the substrate portion 110 may comprise non-tobaccomaterial, tobacco material, tobacco-containing beads, tobacco shreds,tobacco strips, reconstituted tobacco material, or combinations thereof,and/or a mix of finely ground tobacco, tobacco extract, spray driedtobacco extract, or other tobacco form mixed with optional inorganicmaterials (such as calcium carbonate), optional flavors, and aerosolforming materials to form a substantially solid or semi-solid substrate.Representative types of solid and semi-solid constructions andformulations are disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 8,424,538 to Thomas et al.;U.S. Pat. No. 8,464,726 to Sebastian et al.; U.S. Pat. App. Pub. No.2015/0083150 to Conner et al.; U.S. Pat. App. Pub. No. 2015/0157052 toAdeme et al.; and U.S. Pat. App. Pub. No. 2017-0000188 to Nordskog etal., filed Jun. 30, 2015, all of which are incorporated by referenceherein in their entireties. Other examples of substrates are describedin U.S. Pat. App. Pub. No. 2013/0255702 to Griffith et al., thedisclosure of which is incorporated herein by reference in its entirety.

In various implementations, the aerosol source member 104, or a portionthereof, may be wrapped in an exterior overwrap material 112 (see FIG.3). In various implementations, the mouth end 108 of the aerosol sourcemember 104 may include a filter 114, which may, for example, be made ofa cellulose acetate or polypropylene material. The filter 114 mayadditionally or alternatively contain strands of tobacco containingmaterial, such as described in U.S. Pat. No. 5,025,814 to Raker et al.,which is incorporated herein by reference in its entirety. In variousimplementations, the filter 114 may increase the structural integrity ofthe mouth end of the aerosol source member, and/or provide filteringcapacity, if desired, and/or provide resistance to draw. The exterioroverwrap material may comprise a material that resists transfer of heat,which may include a paper or other fibrous material, such as a cellulosematerial. The exterior overwrap material may also include at least onefiller material imbedded or dispersed within the fibrous material. Invarious implementations, the filler material may have the form of waterinsoluble particles. Additionally, the filler material may incorporateinorganic components. In various implementations, the exterior overwrapmay be formed of multiple layers, such as an underlying, bulk layer andan overlying layer, such as a typical wrapping paper in a cigarette.Such materials may include, for example, lightweight “rag fibers” suchas flax, hemp, sisal, rice straw, and/or esparto. The exterior overwrapmay also include a material typically used in a filter element of aconventional cigarette, such as cellulose acetate. Further, an excesslength of the exterior overwrap at the mouth end 108 of the aerosolsource member may function to simply separate the substrate portion 110from the mouth of a consumer or to provide space for positioning of afilter material, as described below, or to affect draw on the article orto affect flow characteristics of the vapor or aerosol leaving thedevice during draw. Further discussions relating to the configurationsfor exterior overwrap materials that may be used with the presentdisclosure may be found in U.S. Pat. No. 9,078,473 to Worm et al., whichis incorporated herein by reference in its entirety.

In various implementations, other components may exist between thesubstrate portion 110 and the mouth end 108 of the aerosol source member104, wherein the mouth end 108 may include a filter 114. For example, insome implementations one or any combination of the following may bepositioned between the substrate portion 110 and the mouth end 108 ofthe aerosol source member 104: an air gap; a hollow tube structure;phase change materials for cooling air; flavor releasing media; ionexchange fibers capable of selective chemical adsorption; aerogelparticles as filter medium; and other suitable materials.

As will be discussed in more detail below, the present disclosure isconfigured for use with a conductive and/or inductive heat source toheat a substrate material to form an aerosol. In variousimplementations, a conductive heat source may comprise a heatingassembly that comprises a resistive heating element. Resistive heatingelements may be configured to produce heat when an electrical current isdirected therethrough. Electrically conductive materials useful asresistive heating elements may be those having low mass, low density,and moderate resistivity and that are thermally stable at thetemperatures experienced during use. Useful heating elements heat andcool rapidly, and thus provide for the efficient use of energy. Rapidheating of the element may be beneficial to provide almost immediatevolatilization of an aerosol precursor material in proximity thereto.Rapid cooling prevents substantial volatilization (and hence waste) ofthe aerosol precursor material during periods when aerosol formation isnot desired. Such heating elements may also permit relatively precisecontrol of the temperature range experienced by the aerosol precursormaterial, especially when time based current control is employed. Usefulelectrically conductive materials are preferably chemically non-reactivewith the materials being heated (e.g., aerosol precursor materials andother inhalable substance materials) so as not to adversely affect theflavor or content of the aerosol or vapor that is produced. Exemplary,non-limiting, materials that may be used as the electrically conductivematerial include carbon, graphite, carbon/graphite composites, metals,ceramics such as metallic and non-metallic carbides, nitrides, oxides,silicides, inter-metallic compounds, cermets, metal alloys, and metalfoils. In particular, refractory materials may be useful. Various,different materials can be mixed to achieve the desired properties ofresistivity, mass, and thermal conductivity. In specificimplementations, metals that can be utilized include, for example,nickel, chromium, alloys of nickel and chromium (e.g., nichrome), andsteel. Materials that can be useful for providing resistive heating aredescribed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,060,671 to Counts et al.; U.S. Pat. No.5,093,894 to Deevi et al.; U.S. Pat. No. 5,224,498 to Deevi et al.; U.S.Pat. No. 5,228,460 to Sprinkel Jr., et al.; U.S. Pat. No. 5,322,075 toDeevi et al.; U.S. Pat. No. 5,353,813 to Deevi et al.; U.S. Pat. No.5,468,936 to Deevi et al.; U.S. Pat. No. 5,498,850 to Das; U.S. Pat. No.5,659,656 to Das; U.S. Pat. No. 5,498,855 to Deevi et al.; U.S. Pat. No.5,530,225 to Hajaligol; U.S. Pat. No. 5,665,262 to Hajaligol; U.S. Pat.No. 5,573,692 to Das et al.; and U.S. Pat. No. 5,591,368 to Fleischhaueret al., the disclosures of which are incorporated herein by reference intheir entireties.

In various implementations, the heating member may be provided in avariety forms, such as in the form of a foil, a foam, a mesh, a hollowball, a half ball, discs, spirals, fibers, wires, films, yarns, strips,ribbons, or cylinders. Such heating elements often comprise a metalmaterial and are configured to produce heat as a result of theelectrical resistance associated with passing an electrical currenttherethrough. Such resistive heating elements may be positioned inproximity to, and/or in direct contact with, the substrate portion. Theheating assembly or the heating member may be located in the controlbody and/or the aerosol source member, as will be discussed in moredetail below. In various implementations, the substrate portion mayinclude components (i.e., heat conducting constituents) that areimbedded in, or otherwise part of, the substrate portion that may serveas, or facilitate the function of, the heating assembly. Some examplesof various heating members and elements are described in U.S. Pat. No.9,078,473 to Worm et al., the disclosure of which is incorporated hereinby reference in its entirety.

Some non-limiting examples of various heating member configurationsinclude configurations in which a heating member or element is placed inproximity with an aerosol source member. For instance, in some examples,at least a portion of a heating member may surround at least a portionof an aerosol source member. In other examples, one or more heatingmembers may be positioned adjacent an exterior of an aerosol sourcemember when inserted in a control body. In other examples, at least aportion of a heating member may penetrate at least a portion of anaerosol source member (such as, for example, one or more prongs and/orspikes that penetrate an aerosol source member), when the aerosol sourcemember is inserted into the control body.

In various implementations, the heating member may take a variety offorms. For example, in one implementation, the heating member maycomprise a cylinder or other heating device located in the control body102. In various implementations, the heating member may be constructedof one or more conductive materials, including, but not limited to,copper, aluminum, platinum, gold, silver, iron, steel, brass, bronze,carbon (e.g., graphite), or any combination thereof. In variousimplementations, the heating member may also be coated with any of theseor other conductive materials. The heating member may be locatedproximate an engagement end of the control body 102, and may beconfigured to substantially surround a portion of the heated end 106 ofthe aerosol source member 104 that includes the substrate portion 110.In such a manner, the heating member may be located proximate thesubstrate portion 110 of the aerosol source member 104 when the aerosolsource member is inserted into the control body 102.

As will be discussed in more detail below, in various implementations,one or more heat conducting constituents may be located within and/or onthe surface of a substrate. While in some implementations, the substratemay comprise a sheet, in other implementations the substrate may take avariety of different forms. In various implementations, the substratemay be used to create a substrate portion of an aerosol source member.As such, in various implementations, when the heating member is heated,the heat conducting constituents increase heat conduction within thesubstrate portion. Although in some implementations the heating membermay comprise a cylinder, it should be noted that in otherimplementations, the heating member may take a variety of forms and, insome implementations, may make direct contact with and/or penetrate thesubstrate portion.

As described above, in addition to being configured for use with aconductive heat source, the present disclosure may also be configuredfor use with an inductive heat source to heat a substrate portion toform an aerosol. In various implementations, an inductive heat sourcemay comprise a resonant transformer, which may comprise a resonanttransmitter and a resonant receiver (e.g., a susceptor). In someimplementations, the resonant transmitter may be located in the controlbody 102 and the substrate portion may include heat conductingconstituents that comprise the resonant receiver. In otherimplementations, the heat conducting constituents may facilitate thefunction of a separate resonant receiver, or may provide an additionalresonant receiver.

For example, in some implementations, the control body 102 may include aresonant transmitter, which, for example, may comprise a foil material,a coil, a cylinder, or other structure configured to generate anoscillating magnetic field. In some implementations, the heat conductingconstituents of the substrate portion may comprise the resonant receiversuch that an alternating current is induced in the heat conductingconstituents of the substrate portion. In other implementations, theheat conducting constituents of the substrate portion may facilitate thefunction of a separate resonant receiver or may serve as a secondresonant receiver such that an alternating current is induced in theheat conducting constituents in addition to a separate resonant receiverthat, in some implementations, may be located in the control body 102.For example, in various implementations, a resonant receiver located inthe control body 102 may comprise one or more prongs that extend intothe substrate portion or are surrounded by the substrate portion. Otherpossible resonant transformer components, including resonanttransmitters and resonant receivers, are described in U.S. patentapplication Ser. No. 15/799,365, filed on Oct. 31, 2017, which isincorporated herein by reference in its entirety.

In other implementations, a resonant transmitter may comprise a helicalcoil configured to circumscribe a cavity into which an aerosol sourcemember, and in particular, a substrate portion of an aerosol sourcemember, is received. In some implementations, the helical coil may belocated between an outer wall of the device and the receiving cavity. Inone implementation, the coil winds may have a circular cross sectionshape; however, in other implementations, the coil winds may have avariety of other cross section shapes, including, but not limited to,oval shaped, rectangular shaped, L-shaped, T-shaped, triangular shaped,and combinations thereof. In another implementation, a pin may extendinto a portion of the receiving cavity, wherein the pin may comprise theresonant transmitter, such as by including a coil structure around orwithin the pin. In various implementations, an aerosol source member maybe received in the receiving cavity wherein one or more components ofthe aerosol source member may serve as the resonant receiver. Forexample, in some implementations, the heat conducting constituents ofthe substrate portion may comprise the resonant receiver. In otherimplementations, the heat conducting constituents may facilitate thefunction of a separate resonant receiver (such as, for example, a pin,rod, and/or receiver particles) that are located in the aerosol sourcemember.

As noted above, in various implementations of the present disclosure, anaerosol source member may comprise a substrate portion that includes asubstrate material. In various implementations, the substrate materialmay comprise a substrate sheet. FIG. 4 is a schematic drawing of asubstrate sheet 200 according to an example implementation of thepresent disclosure. In particular, FIG. 4 illustrates a cast substratesheet 200 comprising an aerosol generating substrate. In the particularimplementation illustrated in FIG. 4, the substrate sheet 200 comprisesa mixture of a fibrous filler material, an aerosol forming material, abinder material, and a plurality of heat conducting constituents. Insome implementations, the fibrous filler material may comprise aplant-derived, non-tobacco material such as a cellulose pulp material.In other implementations, the non-tobacco filler material may not be aplant-derived material.

In various implementations, tobacco materials that may be useful in thepresent disclosure can vary and may include, for example, flue-curedtobacco, burley tobacco, Oriental tobacco or Maryland tobacco, darktobacco, dark-fired tobacco and Rustica tobaccos, as well as other rareor specialty tobaccos, or blends thereof. Tobacco materials also caninclude so-called “blended” forms and processed forms, such as processedtobacco stems (e.g., cut-rolled or cut-puffed stems), volume expandedtobacco (e.g., puffed tobacco, such as dry ice expanded tobacco (DIET),preferably in cut filler form), reconstituted tobaccos (e.g.,reconstituted tobaccos manufactured using paper-making type or castsheet type processes). Various representative tobacco types, processedtypes of tobaccos, and types of tobacco blends are set forth in U.S.Pat. No. 4,836,224 to Lawson et al.; U.S. Pat. No. 4,924,888 to Perfettiet al.; U.S. Pat. No. 5,056,537 to Brown et al.; U.S. Pat. No. 5,159,942to Brinkley et al.; U.S. Pat. No. 5,220,930 to Gentry; U.S. Pat. No.5,360,023 to Blakley et al.; U.S. Pat. No. 6,701,936 to Shafer et al.;U.S. Pat. No. 7,011,096 to Li et al.; and U.S. Pat. No. 7,017,585 to Liet al.; U.S. Pat. No. 7,025,066 to Lawson et al.; U.S. Pat. App. Pub.No. 2004-0255965 to Perfetti et al.; PCT Pat. App. Pub. No. WO 02/37990to Bereman; and Bombick et al., Fund. Appl. Toxicol., 39, p. 11-17(1997); which are incorporated herein by reference in their entireties.Further exemplary tobacco compositions that may be useful are disclosedin U.S. Pat. No. 7,726,320 to Robinson et al., which is incorporatedherein by reference in its entirety.

In various implementations, the filler material may comprise otherfibrous materials, including, but not limited to, hemp, flax, sisal,rice straw, and/or esparto. In various other implementations, the fillermaterial may comprise reconstituted tobacco by itself or combined withother filler materials. Exemplary manners and methods for providing areconstituted tobacco sheet, including casting and paper-makingtechniques, are set forth in U.S. Pat. No. 4,674,519 to Keritsis et al.;U.S. Pat. No. 4,941,484 to Clapp et al.; U.S. Pat. No. 4,987,906 toYoung et al.; U.S. Pat. No. 4,972,854 to Kiernan et al.; U.S. Pat. No.5,099,864 to Young et al.; U.S. Pat. No. 5,143,097 to Sohn et al.; U.S.Pat. No. 5,159,942 to Brinkley et al.; U.S. Pat. No. 5,322,076 toBrinkley et al.; U.S. Pat. No. 5,339,838 to Young et al.; U.S. Pat. No.5,377,698 to Litzinger et al.; U.S. Pat. No. 5,501,237 to Young; andU.S. Pat. No. 6,216,707 to Kumar; each of which is incorporated hereinby reference in its entirety. In some instances, processed tobaccos,such as certain types of reconstituted tobaccos, can be employed aslongitudinally extending strands. See, for example, the type ofconfiguration set forth in U.S. Pat. No. 5,025,814 to Raker, which isincorporated herein by reference in its entirety. In addition, certaintypes of reconstituted tobacco sheets can be formed, rolled, or gatheredinto a desired configuration. In still other implementations, thefibrous material may comprise inorganic fibers of various types (e.g.,fiber glass, metal wires/screens, etc.) and/or (organic) syntheticpolymers. In various implementations, these “fibrous” materials could beunstructured (e.g., randomly distributed like the cellulose fibers intobacco cast sheet) or structured (e.g., a wire mesh).

In some implementations, the aerosol forming material may compriseglycerin or propylene glycol. Preferred aerosol forming materialsinclude polyhydric alcohols (e.g., glycerin, propylene glycol, andtriethylene glycol) and/or water, and any other materials which yield avisible aerosol, as well as any combinations thereof. Representativetypes of aerosol forming materials are set forth in U.S. Pat. No.4,793,365 to Sensabaugh, Jr. et al.; and U.S. Pat. No. 5,101,839 toJakob et al.; PCT Pat. App. Pub. No. WO 98/57556 to Biggs et al.; andChemical and Biological Studies on New Cigarette Prototypes that HeatInstead of Burn Tobacco, R. J. Reynolds Tobacco Company Monograph(1988); which are incorporated herein by reference in their entirety.

As noted above, the present disclosure incorporates a binder material.In the depicted implementation, the binder material comprises anammonium alginate. Preferred binder materials include alginates, such asammonium alginate, propylene glycol alginate, potassium alginate, andsodium alginate. Alginates, and particularly high viscosity alginates,may be employed in conjunction with controlled levels of free calciumions. Other suitable binder materials include hydroxypropylcellulosesuch as Klucel H from Aqualon Co.; hydroxypropylmethylcellulose such asMethocel K4MS from The Dow Chemical Co.; hydroxyethylcellulose such asNatrosol 250 MRCS from Aqualon Co.; microcrystalline cellulose such asAvicel from FMC; methylcellulose such as Methocel A4M from The DowChemical Co.; and sodium carboxymethylcellulose such as CMC 7HF and CMC7H4F from Hercules Inc. Still other possible binder materials includestarches (e.g., corn starch), guar gum, carrageenan, locust bean gum,pectins and xanthan gum. In some implementations, combinations or blendsof two or more binder materials may be employed. Other examples ofbinder materials are described, for example, in U.S. Pat. No. 5,101,839to Jakob et al.; and U.S. Pat. No. 4,924,887 to Raker et al., each ofwhich is incorporated herein by reference in its entirety. In someimplementations, the aerosol forming material may be provided as aportion of the binder material (e.g., propylene glycol alginate). Inaddition, in some implementations, the binder material may comprisenanocellulose derived from a tobacco or other biomass. In some otherimplementations, the binder may include a cyclodextrin.

Some implementations may further comprise additional components, suchas, for example, a heat or flame/burn retardant material such asammonium phosphate. In some implementations, other flame/burn retardantmaterials and additives may be included within the substrate sheet andmy include organo-phosophorus compounds, borax, hydrated alumina,graphite, potassium tripolyphosphate, dipentaerythritol,pentaerythritol, and polyols. Others such as nitrogenous phosphonic acidsalts, mono-ammonium phosphate, ammonium polyphosphate, ammoniumbromide, ammonium borate, ethanolammonium borate, ammonium sulphamate,halogenated organic compounds, thiourea, and antimony oxides are mayalso be used. In each aspect of flame-retardant, burn-retardant, and/orscorch-retardant materials used in the substrate material and/or othercomponents (whether alone or in combination with each other and/or othermaterials), the desirable properties are preferably provided withoutundesirable off-gassing or melting-type behavior. Various manners andmethods for incorporating tobacco into smoking articles, andparticularly smoking articles that are designed so as to notpurposefully burn virtually all of the tobacco within those smokingarticles are set forth in U.S. Pat. No. 4,947,874 to Brooks et al.; U.S.Pat. No. 7,647,932 to Cantrell et al.; U.S. Pat. No. 8,079,371 toRobinson et al.; U.S. Pat. No. 7,290,549 to Banerjee et al.; and U.S.Pat. App. Pub. No. 2007/0215167 to Crooks et al.; the disclosures ofwhich are incorporated herein by reference in their entireties.Additional additives, and other possible enhancing constituents aredescribed in U.S. patent application Ser. No. 15/707,461 to Phillips etal., which is incorporated herein by reference in its entirety.

The aerosol generating substrate may also include a plurality of heatconducting constituents. In various implementations, the heat conductingconstituents may be made of a metal material, a metal alloy material, aceramic material, a polymeric fiber material coated with a metalmaterial, a carbon material (e.g., graphite), or any combinationthereof. In addition, in various implementations, the plurality of heatconducting constituents may take a granular form, a powder form, a fiberform, a mesh, a fiber cloth, or any combination thereof. In the depictedimplementation, the heat conducting constituents comprise a plurality ofmetal fibers 202 that are mixed with the other components of thesubstrate sheet 200 (e.g., the fibrous filler material, aerosol formingmaterial, and binder material). In some implementations, the substratematerial may comprise a cast sheet, into and/or onto which the heatconducting constituents are included. In other implementations, thesubstrate material may comprise a combination of a cast sheet andreconstituted tobacco, into and/or onto which the heat conductingconstituents are included. In still other implementations, the substratematerial may comprise reconstituted tobacco, into and/or onto which theheat conducting constituents are included. In particular, in someimplementations, the substrate material may comprise approximately75%-100% (and in some implementations, approximately 90%) cast sheet andapproximately 0%-25% (and in some implementations, approximately 10%)reconstituted tobacco, in addition to the heat conducting constituents.In other implementations, the substrate material may compriseapproximately 100% reconstituted tobacco, in addition to the heatconducting constituents. In various implementations, the amount of theheat conducting constituents and/or the amount of the non-conductingmaterials may vary according to specific requirements of the substratematerial and/or an aerosol source member incorporating the substratematerial.

Likewise, in various implementations the relative amounts of theelements within each component may vary according to specificrequirements of the substrate material and/or an aerosol source memberincorporating the substrate material. For example, in one exampleimplementation that includes a cast sheet component and a reconstitutedtobacco component, the amount of aerosol forming material (e.g.,glycerin) in the cast sheet component may be approximately 30%-60%, andthe amount of aerosol forming material (e.g., glycerin) in thereconstituted tobacco component may be approximately 10%-25%. In anotherexample implementation that includes approximately 100% reconstitutedtobacco, the amount of aerosol forming material (e.g., glycerin) may beapproximately 5%-40%, and the amount of aerosol forming material (e.g.,glycerin) in the reconstituted tobacco component may be approximately10%-25%.

In the depicted example implementation, the non-heat conductingcomponents of the substrate sheet 200 may comprise approximately 38% cuttobacco, approximately 53% glycerin, approximately 6% ammonium alginate,and approximately 3% ammonium phosphate. In another related, butnon-tobacco implementation, the substrate sheet 200 may compriseapproximately 38% cellulose pulp, approximately 53% glycerin,approximately 6% ammonium alginate, and approximately 3% ammoniumphosphate. In still another related implementation, the substrate sheetmay comprise approximately 90% reconstituted tobacco, approximately 8%cellulose pulp, and approximately 2% potassium carbonate. In someimplementations, the reconstituted tobacco may have an aerosol formingmaterial absorbed and/or loaded into it. For example, someimplementations may have glycerin loaded into the reconstituted tobaccoat, or within a range of 20%-50%. Regardless of the composition of therest of the mixture, it should be noted that the amount of heatconducting constituents added to the mixture may vary according tovarious implementations, and thus the relative amount of the heatconducting constituents may be adjusted to meet particular requirements.It should be noted that the heat conducting constituents, as well as anyof the other portions or components of the substrate materials andaerosol source members represented in the figures of the presentdisclosure, are depicted as such for ease of illustration, and thus therelative size and shape of the heat conducting constituents, and theother portions or components of the substrate materials and aerosolsource members, are not necessarily representative of the size and shapeof such elements in practice.

In any event, in some implementations the substrate sheet 200 may beconstructed via a casting process, such as that described in U.S. Pat.No. 5,697,385, to Seymour et al., the disclosure of which isincorporated herein by reference in its entirety. For example, thefibrous filler material, aerosol forming material, binder material, andthe plurality of heat conducting constituents may be blended together toform a slurry, which may be cast onto a surface (such as, for example, amoving belt). The cast slurry may then experience one or more dryingand/or doctoring steps such that the result is a relatively consistentthickness sheet. In the case of the depicted implementation, theresulting substrate sheet 200 includes the plurality of metal fibers 202randomly (or substantially randomly) distributed within the thickness ofthe substrate sheet 200. In such a manner, by substantially randomlydistributing the heat conducting constituents within the substratesheet, heat conduction of the substrate sheet (or a substrate portioncreated from the substrate sheet), may be increased in all directions.Other examples of casting and paper-making techniques, are set forth inU.S. Pat. No. 4,674,519 to Keritsis et al.; U.S. Pat. No. 4,941,484 toClapp et al.; U.S. Pat. No. 4,987,906 to Young et al.; U.S. Pat. No.4,972,854 to Kiernan et al.; U.S. Pat. No. 5,099,864 to Young et al.;U.S. Pat. No. 5,143,097 to Sohn et al.; U.S. Pat. No. 5,159,942 toBrinkley et al.; U.S. Pat. No. 5,322,076 to Brinkley et al.; U.S. Pat.No. 5,339,838 to Young et al.; U.S. Pat. No. 5,377,698 to Litzinger etal.; U.S. Pat. No. 5,501,237 to Young; and U.S. Pat. No. 6,216,706 toKumar; the disclosures of which is incorporated herein by reference intheir entireties.

FIG. 5 is a schematic drawing of a substrate sheet 300 according toanother example implementation of the present disclosure. In particular,FIG. 5 illustrates a cast substrate sheet 300 comprising the aerosolgenerating substrate. In the particular implementation illustrated inFIG. 5, the substrate sheet 300 comprises a mixture of a fibrous fillermaterial, an aerosol forming material, a binder material, and aplurality of heat conducting constituents. As noted above, in variousimplementations, the heat conducting constituents may be made of a metalmaterial, a metal alloy material, a ceramic material, a carbon material(e.g., graphite), a polymeric fiber material coated with a metalmaterial, and/or any combination thereof. In addition, in variousimplementations, the plurality of heat conducting constituents may takea granular form, a powder form, a fiber form, a mesh, a fiber cloth,and/or any combination thereof.

In the depicted implementation, the heat conducting constituentscomprise a series of bands 302, separated by a series of spaces 304 inbetween, such that a segmented pattern is formed. Furthermore, in thedepicted implementation, the series of bands 302 comprising the heatconducting constituents are formed on the surface of the substrate sheet300. It should be noted that although the bands 302 are shownsubstantially transverse to a longitudinal axis of the sheet 300, inother implementations, bands may be configured at any angle with respectto a longitudinal axis of the sheet, including, for example,substantially parallel to a longitudinal axis of the sheet or angledwith respect to a longitudinal axis of the sheet. As such, and as willbe discussed in more detail below, in various implementations of anaerosol source member in which a substrate sheet is used as an overwrapsubstrate sheet, the resulting bands may have any orientation withrespect to a longitudinal axis of the aerosol source member, including,for example, substantially transverse to a longitudinal axis of theaerosol source member (see, e.g., FIGS. 8 and 9) or, for example,substantially parallel to a longitudinal axis of the aerosol sourcemember or angled with respect to a longitudinal axis of the sourcemember.

In various implementations, prior to addition of the heat conductingconstituents, the substrate sheet 300 may be constructed as noted above.For example, although the relative amounts of the other (i.e., non-heatconducting constituent) components of the substrate sheet 300 may vary,in the some implementations, these components of the substrate sheet 300may comprise approximately 38% cut tobacco, approximately 53% glycerin,approximately 6% ammonium alginate, and approximately 3% ammoniumphosphate. In other implementations, the sheet 300 may compriseapproximately 38% cellulose pulp, approximately 53% glycerin,approximately 6% ammonium alginate, and approximately 3% ammoniumphosphate. As noted above, in some implementations, the substrate sheet300 may be constructed via a casting process. For example, the fibrousfiller material, aerosol forming material, and binder material may beblended together to form a slurry, which may be cast onto a surface(such as, for example, a moving belt). The cast slurry may thenexperience one or more drying and/or doctoring steps such that theresult is a relatively consistent thickness sheet. As noted above,regardless of the composition of the rest of the mixture, it should benoted that the amount of heat conducting constituents added to themixture may vary according to various implementations, and thus therelative amount of the heat conducting constituents may be adjusted tomeet particular requirements.

In various implementations, the segmented pattern may be created in avariety of ways, including, for example, by selective adhesion, metalprinting, lamination, and/or stitching onto the formed substrate sheet300. For example, in one implementation, the bands 302 may be created byselective powder coating of a heat conducting constituents onto asurface of the substrate sheet 300. In another implementation, the bands302 may be created by electrostatically attracting the heat conductingconstituents to a surface of the substrate sheet 300 and adhering thematerial in the segmented pattern to the substrate sheet 300. In anotherimplementation, the bands 302 may be created using a masking template.In another implementation, the bands 302 may be created by printing aconductive metal material (i.e., the heat conducting constituents) ontoa surface of the substrate sheet 300 in the segmented pattern. Inanother implementation, the heat conducting constituents (for example,in the form of conductive yarns) may be stitched into the surface of thesubstrate sheet 300 such that the segmented pattern is formed. In such amanner, by positioning the heat conducting constituents in a segmentedpattern on the substrate sheet, heat conduction of the substrate sheetor a substrate portion created from the substrate sheet, may beincreased in a unidirectional manner.

FIG. 14 is a schematic drawing of a substrate sheet 1200 according toanother example implementation of the present disclosure. In particular,FIG. 14 illustrates a cast substrate sheet 1200 comprising the aerosolgenerating substrate. In the particular implementation illustrated inFIG. 14, the substrate sheet 1200 comprises a mixture of a fibrousfiller material, an aerosol forming material, a binder material, and aplurality of heat conducting constituents. As noted above, in variousimplementations, the heat conducting constituents may be made of a metalmaterial, a metal alloy material, a ceramic material, a carbon material(e.g., graphite), a polymeric fiber material coated with a metalmaterial, and/or any combination thereof. In addition, in variousimplementations, the plurality of heat conducting constituents may takea granular form, a powder form, a fiber form, a mesh, a fiber cloth, orany combination thereof. In the depicted implementation, the heatconducting constituents comprise a metal mesh 1202 that is laminatedonto the substrate sheet 1200. It should be noted that although the mesh1202 is shown such that its pattern is substantially aligned with alongitudinal axis of the sheet 1200, in other implementations, the meshmay be configured at any angle with respect to a longitudinal axis ofthe sheet. As such, and as will be discussed in more detail below, invarious implementations of an aerosol source member in which a substratesheet is used as an overwrap substrate sheet, the mesh may have anyorientation with respect to a longitudinal axis of the aerosol sourcemember.

In various implementations, prior to addition of the heat conductingconstituents, the substrate sheet 1200 may be constructed as notedabove. For example, although the relative amounts of the other (i.e.,non-heat conducting constituent) components of the substrate sheet 1200may vary, in the some implementations, these components of the substratesheet 300 may comprise approximately 38% cut tobacco, approximately 53%glycerin, approximately 6% ammonium alginate, and approximately 3%ammonium phosphate. In other implementations, the sheet 300 may compriseapproximately 38% cellulose pulp, approximately 53% glycerin,approximately 6% ammonium alginate, and approximately 3% ammoniumphosphate. As noted above, in some implementations, the substrate sheet1200 may be constructed via a casting process. For example, the fibrousfiller material, aerosol forming material, and binder material may beblended together to form a slurry, which may be cast onto a surface(such as, for example, a moving belt). The cast slurry may thenexperience one or more drying and/or doctoring steps such that theresult is a relatively consistent thickness sheet. As noted above,regardless of the composition of the rest of the mixture, it should benoted that the amount of heat conducting constituents added to themixture may vary according to various implementations, and thus therelative amount of the heat conducting constituents may be adjusted tomeet particular requirements.

FIG. 6 is a schematic drawing of an aerosol source member 400 accordingto an example implementation of the present disclosure. In the depictedimplementation, the aerosol source member 400 includes a substrateportion 402 and a mouth end portion 404. In various implementations, thesubstrate portion 402 may comprise a collection of intermingled pieces406 that are cut from an initial substrate sheet. For example, in thedepicted implementation, the collection of intermingled pieces 406 arecut from an initial substrate sheet similar to, or substantially thesame as, the substrate sheet 200 described above with respect to FIG. 4.As such, the composition and construction of the individual pieces 406may be similar to, or substantially the same as, that described abovewith respect to the substrate sheet 200. In particular, the intermingledpieces 406 of the depicted implementation may start as an initialsubstrate sheet that comprises a mixture of a fibrous filler material,an aerosol forming material, a binder material, and a plurality of heatconducting constituents. Reference is made to the discussion above withrespect to various possible filler materials, aerosol forming materials,binder materials, and heat conducting constituents for use in theinitial substrate sheet, and possible relative amounts of each. Theinitial substrate sheet may then be cut into a plurality of pieces(e.g., strips, sections, portions, etc.) and collected for use as thesubstrate portion 402 of the aerosol source member 400. In variousimplementations, the initial substrate sheet may be cut in a variety ofdifferent ways. For example, in one implementation, the initialsubstrate sheet may be cut via a mechanical cutting machine (e.g., aguillotine device and/or a paper shredding machine). In otherimplementations, the initial substrate sheet may be cut via a lasercutting and/or a waterjet cutting device. In other implementations, theinitial substrate sheet may be fibrillated. In other implementations, ahammer mill may be used to reduce the initial substrate sheet size andthen the resulting sheet may be subsequently cut using one or more ofthe methods described above.

As described above, in some implementations, the initial substrate sheetmay be constructed via a casting process, wherein the fibrous fillermaterial, aerosol forming material, binder material, and plurality ofheat conducting constituents may be blended together to form a slurry,which may be cast onto a surface (such as, for example, a moving belt).The cast slurry may then experience one or more drying and/or doctoringsteps such that the result is a relatively consistent thickness initialsheet. In the case of the depicted implementation, the resulting initialsheet may include a plurality of metal fibers randomly (or substantiallyrandomly) distributed within the thickness of the sheet.

In various implementations, the mouth end portion 404 of the aerosolsource member 400 may comprise a variety of materials, which, in someimplementations, may include a filter, as described above. Othermaterials that may be located in the mouth end portion 404, eitherindividually, or in any combination include, but are not limited to,tobacco blends, one or more flavorants, void spaces, and/or phase changematerials. The mouth end portion 404 may also include a hollow tubestructure. In various implementations, such a tube may be constructedfrom any of a variety of materials and may include one or moreadhesives. Example materials include, but are not limited to, paper,paper layers, paperboard, plastic, cardboard, and/or compositematerials. In various implementations, tobacco blends may comprisevarious types and forms of tobaccos in a blended cut filler form. Forexample, certain popular tobacco blends for cigarette manufacture,commonly referred to as “American blends,” comprise mixtures of cut orshredded pieces of flue-cured tobacco, burley tobacco and Orientaltobacco; and such blends, in many cases, also contain pieces ofprocessed tobaccos, such as processed tobacco stems, volume expandedtobaccos and/or reconstituted tobaccos. The precise amount of each typeor form of tobacco within a tobacco blend used for the manufacture of aparticular smoking article can vary, and is a manner of design choice,depending upon factors such as the sensory characteristics (e.g., flavorand aroma) that are desired. See, for example, the types of tobaccoblends described in Tobacco Encyclopedia, Voges (Ed.) p. 44-45 (1984),Browne, The Design of Cigarettes, 3.sup.rd Ed., p. 43 (1990) and TobaccoProduction, Chemistry and Technology, Davis et al. (Eds.) p. 346 (1999).See, also, the representative types of tobacco blends set forth in U.S.Pat. No. 4,836,224 to Lawson et al.; U.S. Pat. No. 4,924,888 to Perfettiet al.; U.S. Pat. No. 5,056,537 to Brown et al.; and U.S. Pat. No.5,220,930 to Gentry; U.S. Patent App. Pub. Nos, 2004/0255965 to Perfettiet al.; and 2005/0066986 to Nestor et al.; PCT App. Pub. No. WO 02/37990to Bereman; and Bombick et al., Fund. Appl. Toxicol., 39, p. 11-17(1997); each of which is incorporated herein by reference in itsentirety.

As used herein, reference to a “flavorant” refers to compounds orcomponents that can be aerosolized and delivered to a user and whichimpart a sensory experience in terms of taste and/or aroma. Exemplaryflavorants include, but are not limited to, vanillin, ethyl vanillin,cream, tea, coffee, fruit (e.g., apple, cherry, strawberry, peach andcitrus flavors, including lime and lemon), maple, menthol, mint,peppermint, spearmint, wintergreen, nutmeg, clove, lavender, cardamom,ginger, honey, anise, sage, rosemary, hibiscus, rose hip, yerba mate,guayusa, honeybush, rooibos, yerba santa, bacopa monniera, gingkobiloba, withania somnifera, cinnamon, sandalwood, jasmine, cascarilla,cocoa, licorice, and flavorings and flavor packages of the type andcharacter traditionally used for the flavoring of cigarette, cigar, andpipe tobaccos. Syrups, such as high fructose corn syrup, also can beemployed. Exemplary plant-derived compositions that may be suitable aredisclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 9,107,453 and U.S. Pat. App. Pub. No.2012/0152265 both to Dube et al., the disclosures of which areincorporated herein by reference in their entireties. The selection ofsuch further components are variable based upon factors such as thesensory characteristics that are desired for the smoking article, andthe present disclosure is intended to encompass any such furthercomponents that are readily apparent to those skilled in the art oftobacco and tobacco-related or tobacco-derived products. See, e.g.,Gutcho, Tobacco Flavoring Substances and Methods, Noyes Data Corp.(1972) and Leffingwell et al., Tobacco Flavoring for Smoking Products(1972), the disclosures of which are incorporated herein by reference intheir entireties. It should be noted that reference to a flavorantshould not be limited to any single flavorant as described above, andmay, in fact, represent a combination of one or more flavorants.

Some examples of suitable phase change materials include, but arelimited to, salts, such as AgNO.sub.3, AlCl.sub.3, TaCl.sub.3,InCl.sub.3, SnCl.sub.2, AlI.sub.3, and TiI.sub.4; metals and metalalloys such as selenium, tin, indium, tin-zinc, indium-zinc, orindium-bismuth; and organic compounds such as D-mannitol, succinic acid,p-nitrobenzoic acid, hydroquinone and adipic acid. Other examples aredescribed in U.S. Pat. No. 8,430,106 to Potter et al., which isincorporated herein by reference in its entirety.

FIG. 7 is a schematic drawing of an aerosol source member 500 accordingto an example implementation of the present disclosure. In the depictedimplementation, the aerosol source member 500 includes a substrateportion 502 and a mouth end portion 504. In various implementations, thesubstrate portion 502 may comprise a series of overlapping layers 506 ofan initial substrate sheet (e.g., a gathered web comprising an initialsubstrate sheet). For example, in the depicted implementation, theseries of overlapping layers 506 comprises a series of layers of aninitial substrate sheet similar to, or substantially the same as, thesubstrate sheet 200 described above with respect to FIG. 4. In anotherexample implementation, the series of overlapping layers 506 of aninitial substrate sheet may be similar to, or substantially the same as,the substrate sheet 1200 of FIG. 14. As such, the composition andconstruction of the layers may be similar to, or substantially the sameas, that described above with respect to the substrate sheet 200 orsheet 1200. In particular, the overlapping layers of the depictedimplementation may start as an initial substrate sheet that comprises amixture of a fibrous filler material, an aerosol forming material, abinder material, and a plurality of heat conducting constituents.Reference is made to the discussion above with respect to variouspossible filler materials, aerosol forming materials, binder materials,and heat conducting constituents for use in the initial substrate sheet,and possible relative amounts of each. The initial substrate sheet maythen be folded into an overlapping manner (e.g., gathered web) for useas the substrate portion 502 of the aerosol source member 500. It shouldbe noted that in various implementations, the term “overlapping layers”may also include bunched, crumped, and/or otherwise gathered layers inwhich the individual layers may not be obvious.

In various implementations, the mouth end portion 504 may comprise avariety of materials, which, in some implementations, may include afilter, as described above. Other materials that may be located in themouth end portion, either individually, or in any combination include,but are not limited to, tobacco blends, one or more flavorants, voidspaces, and/or phase change materials. The mouth end portion 404 mayalso include a hollow tube structure. In various implementations, such atube may be constructed from any of a variety of materials and mayinclude one or more adhesives. Example materials include, but are notlimited to, paper, paper layers, paperboard, plastic, cardboard, and/orcomposite materials. Reference is made to the discussion of thesecomponents above with respect to FIG. 6.

FIG. 8 is a schematic drawing of an aerosol source member 600 accordingto an example implementation of the present disclosure. In the depictedimplementation, the aerosol source member 600 includes a substrateportion 602, a mouth end portion 604, and an overwrap substrate sheet608 extending around at least a portion of the substrate portion 602. Invarious implementations, the overwrap substrate sheet 608 may beseparate from an optional exterior overwrap material, as discussedabove. In various implementations, the substrate portion 602 maycomprise a collection of intermingled pieces 606 that are cut from aninitial substrate sheet. For example, in the depicted implementation,the collection of intermingled pieces 606 are cut from an initialsubstrate sheet similar to, or substantially the same as, the substratesheet 200 described above with respect to FIG. 4. As such, thecomposition and construction of the individual pieces 606 may be thesimilar to, or substantially the same as, that described above withrespect to the sheet 200. In particular, the intermingled pieces 606 ofthe depicted implementation may start as an initial substrate sheet thatcomprises a mixture of a fibrous filler material, an aerosol formingmaterial, a binder material, and a plurality of heat conductingconstituents. Reference is made to the discussion above with respect tovarious possible filler materials, aerosol forming materials, bindermaterials, and heat conducting constituents for use in the initialsubstrate sheet and possible relative amounts of each. The initialsubstrate sheet may then be cut into a plurality of pieces (e.g.,strips, sections, portions, etc.) and collected for use as the substrateportion 602 of the aerosol source member 600.

As described above, in some implementations, the initial substrate sheetmay be constructed via a casting process, wherein the fibrous fillermaterial, aerosol forming material, binder material, and plurality ofheat conducting constituents may be blended together to form a slurry,which may be cast onto a surface (such as, for example, a moving belt).The cast slurry may then experience one or more drying and/or doctoringsteps such that the result is a relatively consistent thickness initialsheet. In the case of the depicted implementation, the resulting initialsheet may include a plurality of metal fibers randomly (or substantiallyrandomly) distributed within the thickness of the sheet.

As noted above, the aerosol source member 600 of the depictedimplementation also includes an overwrap substrate sheet 608 thatextends around at least a portion of the substrate portion 602. In thedepicted implementation, the overwrap substrate sheet 608 is similar to,or substantially the same as, the substrate sheet 300 described abovewith respect to FIG. 5. As such, the composition and construction of theoverwrap substrate sheet 608 may be similar to, or substantially thesame as, that described above with respect to the substrate sheet 300.For example, in the depicted implementation, the overwrap substratesheet 608 comprises a mixture of a fibrous filler material, an aerosolforming material, a binder material, and a plurality of heat conductingconstituents. As noted above, in various implementations, the heatconducting constituents may be made of a metal material, a metal alloymaterial, a ceramic material, a polymeric fiber material coated with ametal material, or any combination thereof. In addition, in variousimplementations, the plurality of heat conducting constituents may takea granular form, a powder form, a fiber form, a mesh, a fiber cloth, orany combination thereof. In the depicted implementation, the heatconducting constituents comprise a series of bands 612, separated by aseries of spaces 614 in between, such that a segmented pattern isformed. Furthermore, in the depicted implementation, the series of bands612 that comprise the heat conducting constituents are formed on thesurface of the overwrap substrate sheet 608. Further reference is madeto the discussion above with respect to various possible fillermaterials, aerosol forming materials, binder materials, and heatconducting constituents for use in the initial substrate sheet, andpossible relative amounts of each.

As noted above, in some implementations, the overwrap substrate sheet608 may be constructed via a casting process. For example, the fibrousfiller material, aerosol forming material, and binder material may beblended together to form a slurry, which may be cast onto a surface(such as, for example, a moving belt). The cast slurry may thenexperience one or more drying and/or doctoring steps such that theresult is a relatively consistent thickness sheet.

In various implementations, the segmented pattern may be created in avariety of ways, including, for example, by selective adhesion, metalprinting, lamination, and/or stitching onto the formed overwrap sheet608. For example, in one implementation, the bands 612 may be created byselective powder coating of a heat conducting material onto a surface ofthe overwrap substrate sheet 608. In another implementation, the bands612 may be created by electrostatically attracting the heat conductingmaterial to a surface of the overwrap substrate sheet 608 and adheringthe material in the segmented pattern to the overwrap substrate sheet608. In another implementation, the bands 612 may be created using amasking template. In another implementation, the bands 612 may becreated by printing a conductive metal material onto a surface of theoverwrap substrate sheet 608 in the segmented pattern. In anotherimplementation, the heat conducting material (for example, in the formof conductive yarns) may be stitched into the surface of the overwrapsubstrate sheet 608 such that the segmented pattern is formed. As notedabove, in various implementations of an aerosol source member in which asubstrate sheet is used as an overwrap substrate sheet, the resultingbands may have any orientation with respect to a longitudinal axis ofthe aerosol source member, including, for example, bands that aresubstantially transverse to a longitudinal axis of the aerosol sourcemember, such as the depicted implementation. In other implementations,the bands may have any other angle with respect to a longitudinal axisof the aerosol source member, including, for example, substantiallyparallel to a longitudinal axis of the aerosol source member or angledwith respect to a longitudinal axis of the aerosol source member.

In various implementations, the mouth end portion 604 may comprise avariety of materials, which, in some implementations, may include afilter, as described above. Other materials that may be located in themouth end portion, either individually, or in any combination include,but are not limited to, tobacco blends, one or more flavorants, voidspaces, and/or phase change materials. The mouth end portion 404 mayalso include a hollow tube structure. In various implementations, such atube may be constructed from any of a variety of materials and mayinclude one or more adhesives. Example materials include, but are notlimited to, paper, paper layers, paperboard, plastic, cardboard, and/orcomposite materials. Reference is made to the discussion of thesecomponents above with respect to FIG. 6.

FIG. 9 is a schematic drawing of an aerosol source member 700 accordingto an example implementation of the present disclosure. In the depictedimplementation, the aerosol source member 700 includes a substrateportion 702, a mouth end portion 704, and an overwrap substrate sheet708 extending around at least a portion of the substrate portion 702. Invarious implementations, the overwrap substrate sheet 708 may beseparate from an optional exterior overwrap material, as discussedabove. In various implementations, the substrate portion 702 maycomprise a series of overlapping layers 706 of an initial substratesheet (e.g., a gathered web comprising an initial substrate sheet). Forexample, in the depicted implementation, the series of overlappinglayers 706 comprises layers of an initial substrate sheet similar to, orsubstantially the same as, the substrate sheet 200 described above withrespect to FIG. 4. In another example implementation, the series ofoverlapping layers 506 of an initial substrate sheet may be similar to,or substantially the same as, the substrate sheet 1200 of FIG. 14. Assuch, the composition and construction of the layers may be similar to,or substantially the same as, that described above with respect to thesheet 200 or sheet 1200. In particular, the overlapping layers of thedepicted implementation may start as an initial substrate sheet thatcomprises a mixture of a fibrous filler material, an aerosol formingmaterial, a binder material, and a plurality of heat conductingconstituents. Reference is made to the discussion above with respect tovarious possible filler materials, aerosol forming materials, bindermaterials, and heat conducting constituents for use in the initialsubstrate sheet and possible relative amounts of each.

As described above, in some implementations, the initial substrate sheetmay be constructed via a casting process, wherein the fibrous fillermaterial, aerosol forming material, binder material, and plurality ofheat conducting constituents may be blended together to form a slurry,which may be cast onto a surface (such as, for example, a moving belt).The cast slurry may then experience one or more drying and/or doctoringsteps such that the result is a relatively consistent thickness initialsheet. In the case of the depicted implementation, the resulting initialsheet may include a plurality of metal fibers randomly (or substantiallyrandomly) distributed within the thickness of the sheet. In someimplementations, the initial substrate sheet may be a reconstitutedtobacco sheet as described above.

As noted above, the aerosol source member 700 of the depictedimplementation also includes an overwrap substrate sheet 708 thatextends around at least a portion of the substrate portion 702. In thedepicted implementation, the overwrap substrate sheet 708 is similar to,or substantially the same as, the substrate sheet 300 described abovewith respect to FIG. 5. As such, the composition and construction of theoverwrap substrate sheet 708 may be similar to, or substantially thesame as, that described above with respect to the substrate sheet 300.For example, in the depicted implementation, the overwrap substratesheet 708 comprises a mixture of a fibrous filler material, an aerosolforming material, a binder material, and a plurality of heat conductingconstituents. As noted above, in various implementations, the heatconducting constituents may be made of a metal material, a metal alloymaterial, a ceramic material, a polymeric fiber material coated with ametal material, or any combination thereof. In addition, in variousimplementations, the plurality of heat conducting constituents may takea granular form, a powder form, a fiber form, a mesh, a fiber cloth, orany combination thereof. In the depicted implementation, the heatconducting constituents comprise a series of bands 712, separated by aseries of spaces 714 in between, such that a segmented pattern isformed. Furthermore, in the depicted implementation, the series of bands712 that comprise the heat conducting constituents are formed on thesurface of the overwrap substrate sheet 708. Further reference is madeto the discussion above with respect to various possible fillermaterials, aerosol forming materials, binder materials, and heatconducting constituents for use in the initial substrate sheet, andpossible relative amounts of each.

As noted above, in some implementations, the overwrap substrate sheet708 may be constructed via a casting process. For example, the fibrousfiller material, aerosol forming material, and binder material may beblended together to form a slurry, which may be cast onto a surface(such as, for example, a moving belt). The cast slurry may thenexperience one or more drying and/or doctoring steps such that theresult is a relatively consistent thickness sheet.

In various implementations, the segmented pattern may be created in avariety of ways, including, for example, by selective adhesion, metalprinting, lamination, and/or stitching onto the formed overwrapsubstrate sheet 708. For example, in one implementation, the bands 712may be created by selective powder coating of a heat conducting materialonto a surface of the overwrap substrate sheet 708. In anotherimplementation, the bands 712 may be created by electrostaticallyattracting the heat conducting material to a surface of the overwrapsubstrate sheet 708 and adhering the material in the segmented patternto the overwrap substrate sheet 708. In another implementation, thebands 712 may be created using a masking template. In anotherimplementation, the bands 712 may be created by printing a conductivemetal material onto a surface of the overwrap substrate sheet 708 in thesegmented pattern. In another implementation, the heat conductingmaterial (for example, in the form of conductive yarns) may be stitchedinto the surface of the overwrap substrate sheet 708 such that thesegmented pattern is formed. As noted above, in various implementationsof an aerosol source member in which a substrate sheet is used as anoverwrap substrate sheet, the resulting bands may have any orientationwith respect to a longitudinal axis of the aerosol source member,including, for example, bands that are substantially transverse to alongitudinal axis of the aerosol source member, such as the depictedimplementation. In other implementations, the bands may have any otherangle with respect to a longitudinal axis of the aerosol source member,including, for example, substantially parallel to a longitudinal axis ofthe aerosol source member or angled with respect to a longitudinal axisof the source member.

As noted above, in various implementations, the mouth end portion 704may comprise a variety of materials, which, in some implementations, mayinclude a filter, as described above. Other materials that may belocated in the mouth end portion, either individually, or in anycombination include, but are not limited to, tobacco blends, one or moreflavorants, void spaces, and/or phase change materials. The mouth endportion 404 may also include a hollow tube structure. In variousimplementations, such a tube may be constructed from any of a variety ofmaterials and may include one or more adhesives. Example materialsinclude, but are not limited to, paper, paper layers, paperboard,plastic, cardboard, and/or composite materials. Reference is made to theabove discussion of these components with respect to FIG. 6.

FIG. 15 is a schematic drawing of an aerosol source member 1300according to an example implementation of the present disclosure. In thedepicted implementation, the aerosol source member 1300 includes asubstrate portion 1302, a mouth end portion 1304, and an overwrapsubstrate sheet 1308 extending around at least a portion of thesubstrate portion 1302. In various implementations, the overwrapsubstrate sheet 1308 may be separate from an optional exterior overwrapmaterial, as discussed above. In various implementations, the substrateportion 1302 may comprise a collection of intermingled pieces 1306 thatare cut from an initial substrate sheet. For example, in the depictedimplementation, the collection of intermingled pieces 1306 are cut froman initial substrate sheet similar to, or substantially the same as, thesubstrate sheet 200 described above with respect to FIG. 4. As such, thecomposition and construction of the individual pieces 1306 may be thesimilar to, or substantially the same as, that described above withrespect to the sheet 200. In particular, the intermingled pieces 1306 ofthe depicted implementation may start as an initial substrate sheet thatcomprises a mixture of a fibrous filler material, an aerosol formingmaterial, a binder material, and a plurality of heat conductingconstituents. Reference is made to the discussion above with respect tovarious possible filler materials, aerosol forming materials, bindermaterials, and heat conducting constituents for use in the initialsubstrate sheet and possible relative amounts of each. The initialsubstrate sheet may then be cut into a plurality of pieces (e.g.,strips, sections, portions, etc.) and collected for use as the substrateportion 1302 of the aerosol source member 1300.

As described above, in some implementations, the initial substrate sheetmay be constructed via a casting process, wherein the fibrous fillermaterial, aerosol forming material, binder material, and plurality ofheat conducting constituents may be blended together to form a slurry,which may be cast onto a surface (such as, for example, a moving belt).The cast slurry may then experience one or more drying and/or doctoringsteps such that the result is a relatively consistent thickness initialsheet. In the case of the depicted implementation, the resulting initialsheet may include a plurality of metal fibers randomly (or substantiallyrandomly) distributed within the thickness of the sheet. In someimplementations, the initial substrate sheet may be a reconstitutedtobacco sheet as described above.

As noted above, the aerosol source member 1300 of the depictedimplementation also includes an overwrap substrate sheet 1308 thatextends around at least a portion of the substrate portion 1302. In thedepicted implementation, the overwrap substrate sheet 1308 is similarto, or substantially the same as, the substrate sheet 1200 describedabove with respect to FIG. 14. As such, the composition and constructionof the overwrap substrate sheet 1308 may be similar to, or substantiallythe same as, that described above with respect to the substrate sheet1200. For example, in the depicted implementation, the overwrapsubstrate sheet 1308 comprises a mixture of a fibrous filler material,an aerosol forming material, a binder material, and a plurality of heatconducting constituents. As noted above, in various implementations, theheat conducting constituents may be made of a metal material, a metalalloy material, a ceramic material, a polymeric fiber material coatedwith a metal material, or any combination thereof. In addition, invarious implementations, the plurality of heat conducting constituentsmay take a granular form, a powder form, a fiber form, a mesh, a fibercloth, or any combination thereof. In the depicted implementation, theheat conducting constituents comprise a metal mesh 1310 that has beenlaminated to a substrate sheet. Further reference is made to thediscussion above with respect to various possible filler materials,aerosol forming materials, binder materials, and heat conductingconstituents for use in the initial substrate sheet, and possiblerelative amounts of each.

As noted above, in some implementations, the overwrap substrate sheet1308 may be constructed via a casting process. For example, the fibrousfiller material, aerosol forming material, and binder material may beblended together to form a slurry, which may be cast onto a surface(such as, for example, a moving belt). The cast slurry may thenexperience one or more drying and/or doctoring steps such that theresult is a relatively consistent thickness sheet. In otherimplementations, the initial substrate sheet may be a reconstitutedtobacco sheet as described above.

As noted above, in various implementations of an aerosol source memberin which a substrate sheet is used as an overwrap substrate sheet, theresulting pattern may have any orientation with respect to alongitudinal axis of the aerosol source member, including, for example,a pattern that is substantially aligned with a longitudinal axis of theaerosol source member, such as the depicted implementation. In otherimplementations, the pattern may have any other angle with respect to alongitudinal axis of the aerosol source member.

In various implementations, the mouth end portion 1304 may comprise avariety of materials, which, in some implementations, may include afilter, as described above. Other materials that may be located in themouth end portion, either individually, or in any combination include,but are not limited to, tobacco blends, one or more flavorants, voidspaces, and/or phase change materials. The mouth end portion 404 mayalso include a hollow tube structure. In various implementations, such atube may be constructed from any of a variety of materials and mayinclude one or more adhesives. Example materials include, but are notlimited to, paper, paper layers, paperboard, plastic, cardboard, and/orcomposite materials. Reference is made to the discussion of thesecomponents above with respect to FIG. 6.

FIG. 16 is a schematic drawing of an aerosol source member 1400according to an example implementation of the present disclosure. In thedepicted implementation, the aerosol source member 1400 includes asubstrate portion 1402, a mouth end portion 1404, and an overwrapsubstrate sheet 1408 extending around at least a portion of thesubstrate portion 1402. In various implementations, the overwrapsubstrate sheet 1408 may be separate from an optional exterior overwrapmaterial, as discussed above. In various implementations, the substrateportion 1402 may comprise a series of overlapping layers 1406 of aninitial substrate sheet (e.g., a gathered web comprising an initialsubstrate sheet). For example, in the depicted implementation, theseries of overlapping layers 1406 comprises layers of an initialsubstrate sheet similar to, or substantially the same as, the substratesheet 200 described above with respect to FIG. 4. In another exampleimplementation, the series of overlapping layers 1406 of an initialsubstrate sheet may be similar to, or substantially the same as, thesubstrate sheet 1200 of FIG. 14. As such, the composition andconstruction of the layers may be similar to, or substantially the sameas, that described above with respect to the sheet 200 or sheet 1200. Inparticular, the overlapping layers of the depicted implementation maystart as an initial substrate sheet that comprises a mixture of afibrous filler material, an aerosol forming material, a binder material,and a plurality of heat conducting constituents. Reference is made tothe discussions above with respect to various possible filler materials,aerosol forming materials, binder materials, and heat conductingconstituents for use in the initial substrate sheet and possiblerelative amounts of each.

As described above, in some implementations, the initial substrate sheetmay be constructed via a casting process, wherein the fibrous fillermaterial, aerosol forming material, binder material, and plurality ofheat conducting constituents may be blended together to form a slurry,which may be cast onto a surface (such as, for example, a moving belt).The cast slurry may then experience one or more drying and/or doctoringsteps such that the result is a relatively consistent thickness initialsheet. In the case of the depicted implementation, the resulting initialsheet may include a plurality of metal fibers randomly (or substantiallyrandomly) distributed within the thickness of the sheet. In otherimplementations, the initial substrate sheet may be a reconstitutedtobacco sheet as described above.

As noted above, the aerosol source member 1400 of the depictedimplementation also includes an overwrap substrate sheet 1408 thatextends around at least a portion of the substrate portion 1402. In thedepicted implementation, the overwrap substrate sheet 1408 is similarto, or substantially the same as, the substrate sheet 1200 describedabove with respect to FIG. 14. As such, the composition and constructionof the overwrap substrate sheet 1408 may be similar to, or substantiallythe same as, that described above with respect to the substrate sheet1200. For example, in the depicted implementation, the overwrapsubstrate sheet 1408 comprises a mixture of a fibrous filler material,an aerosol forming material, a binder material, and a plurality of heatconducting constituents. As noted above, in various implementations, theheat conducting constituents may be made of a metal material, a metalalloy material, a ceramic material, a polymeric fiber material coatedwith a metal material, or any combination thereof. In addition, invarious implementations, the plurality of heat conducting constituentsmay take a granular form, a powder form, a fiber form, a mesh, a fibercloth, or any combination thereof. In the depicted implementation, theheat conducting constituents comprise a metal mesh 1410 that has beenlaminated to a substrate sheet. The reference is made to the discussionabove with respect to various possible filler materials, aerosol formingmaterials, binder materials, and heat conducting constituents for use inthe initial substrate sheet, and possible relative amounts of each.

As noted above, in some implementations, the overwrap substrate sheet1408 may be constructed via a casting process. For example, the fibrousfiller material, aerosol forming material, and binder material may beblended together to form a slurry, which may be cast onto a surface(such as, for example, a moving belt). The cast slurry may thenexperience one or more drying and/or doctoring steps such that theresult is a relatively consistent thickness sheet. In otherimplementations, the initial substrate sheet may be a reconstitutedtobacco sheet as described above.

As noted above, in various implementations of an aerosol source memberin which a substrate sheet is used as an overwrap substrate sheet, theresulting pattern may have any orientation with respect to alongitudinal axis of the aerosol source member, including, for example,a pattern that is substantially aligned with a longitudinal axis of theaerosol source member, such as the depicted implementation. In otherimplementations, the pattern may have any other angle with respect to alongitudinal axis of the aerosol source member.

As noted above, in various implementations, the mouth end portion 1404may comprise a variety of materials, which, in some implementations, mayinclude a filter, as described above. Other materials that may belocated in the mouth end portion, either individually, or in anycombination include, but are not limited to, tobacco blends, one or moreflavorants, void spaces, and/or phase change materials. The mouth endportion 404 may also include a hollow tube structure. In variousimplementations, such a tube may be constructed from any of a variety ofmaterials and may include one or more adhesives. Example materialsinclude, but are not limited to, paper, paper layers, paperboard,plastic, cardboard, and/or composite materials. Reference is made to theabove discussion of these components with respect to FIG. 6.

FIG. 10 illustrates various operations in a method 800 of manufacturingan aerosol generating substrate for use in an aerosol source memberaccording to an example implementation of the present disclosure. Invarious implementations, the method 800 may comprise providing a fibrousfiller material at operation 802, providing an aerosol forming materialat operation 804, proving a binder material at operation 806, andproviding a plurality of heat conducting constituents at operation 808.The method 800 may further comprise forming a substrate sheet using thefibrous filler material, aerosol forming material, binder material, andplurality of heat conducting constituents at operation 810. In variousimplementations, reference is made to the fibrous filler materials,aerosol forming materials, and binder materials, as well as substratesheets, described above with respect to FIGS. 4-5.

FIG. 11 illustrates various operations in a method 900 of manufacturingan aerosol source member for use with an aerosol source delivery deviceaccording to an example implementation of the present disclosure. Invarious implementations, the method 900 may comprise forming an initialsubstrate sheet comprising a fibrous filler material, an aerosoldelivery device, a binder material, and a plurality of heat conductingconstituents at operation 902. The method 900 may further comprisecutting the initial substrate sheet into a plurality of pieces atoperation 904, forming a collection of intermingled pieces from theplurality of pieces of the initial substrate sheet at operation 906, andforming a substrate portion using the collection of intermingled piecesat operation 908. In various implementations, reference is made to thefibrous filler materials, aerosol delivery materials, binder materials,and heat conducting constituents, as well substrate sheets, describedabove with respect to FIGS. 4-6 and 8.

FIG. 12 illustrates various operations in a method 1000 of manufacturingan aerosol source member for use with an aerosol source delivery deviceaccording to an example implementation of the present disclosure. Invarious implementations, the method 1000 may comprise forming an initialsubstrate sheet comprising a fibrous filler material, an aerosoldelivery device, a binder material, and a plurality of heat conductingconstituents at operation 1002. The method 1000 may further compriseoverlapping a plurality of layers of the initial substrate sheet atoperation 1004, and forming a substrate portion using the overlappinglayers at operation 1006. In various implementations, reference is madeto the fibrous filler materials, aerosol delivery materials, bindermaterials, and heat conducting constituents, as well as substratesheets, described above with respect to FIGS. 4-5, 7 and 9.

FIG. 13 illustrates various operations in a method 1100 of manufacturingan aerosol source member for use with an aerosol source delivery deviceaccording to an example implementation of the present disclosure. Invarious implementations, the method 1100 may comprise forming a mixturecomprising a fibrous filler material, an aerosol forming material, abinder material, and a plurality of heat conducting constituents atoperation 1102. The method 1000 may further comprise extruding andspheronizing the mixture into a plurality of granules at operation 1104,and forming a collection of the granules at operation 1106. The methodmay further comprise forming a substrate portion using the collection ofgranules at operation 1108. It should be noted that in someimplementations, the granules may be encapsulated spheres.

The present disclosure provides aerosol generating substrates andaerosol source members for use in aerosol delivery devices that useelectrical energy to heat a heating member, which in turn heats asubstrate material (preferably without combusting the substrate materialto any significant degree) to form an inhalable substance such as anaerosol, the devices being sufficiently compact to be considered“hand-held” devices. In certain implementations, such devices mayparticularly be characterized as smoking articles. As used herein, theterm is intended to mean a device or article that provides the tasteand/or the sensation (e.g., hand-feel or mouth-feel) of smoking acigarette, cigar, or pipe without the actual combustion of any componentof the device. The term smoking device or article does not necessarilyindicate that, in operation, the device produces smoke in the sense ofthe by-product of combustion or pyrolysis. Rather, smoking relates tothe physical action of an individual in using the device—e.g., holdingthe device in a hand, drawing on one end of the device, and inhalingfrom the device. In further implementations, the inventive devices maybe characterized as being vapor-producing devices, aerosolizationdevices, or pharmaceutical delivery devices. Thus, the devices may bearranged so as to provide one or more substances in an inhalable state.

As noted above, although an aerosol source member and a control body maybe provided together as a complete smoking article or pharmaceuticaldelivery article generally, the components may be provided separately.For example, the present disclosure also encompasses a disposable unitfor use with a reusable smoking article or a reusable pharmaceuticaldelivery article. In specific implementations, such a disposable unit(which may be an aerosol source member as illustrated in the appendedfigures) can comprise a substantially tubular shaped body having aheated end configured to engage the reusable smoking article orpharmaceutical delivery article, an opposing mouth end configured toallow passage of an inhalable substance to a consumer, and a wall withan outer surface and an inner surface that defines an interior space.Various implementations of an aerosol source member (or cartridge) aredescribed in U.S. Pat. No. 9,078,473 to Worm et al., which isincorporated herein by reference in its entirety.

In addition to the disposable unit, the disclosure further may becharacterized as providing a separate control body for use in a reusablesmoking article or a reusable pharmaceutical delivery article. Inspecific implementations, the control body may generally be a housinghaving a receiving end (which may include a receiving chamber with anopen end) for receiving a heated end of a separately provided aerosolsource member. The control body may further include an electrical energysource that provides power to an electrical heating member, which may bea component of the control body or may be included in aerosol sourcemember to be used with the control unit. For example, in someimplementations, the electrical energy source may power one or moreheating assemblies that, in some implementations, may be a conductiveheat source and/or an inductive heat source. In some implementations,one or more of the heating assemblies may be independent and/or separatefrom one or more other heating assemblies. Thus, in someimplementations, there may be one or more conductive heating assemblies.In other implementations, there may be one or more inductive heatingassemblies. In still other implementations, there may be one or moreconductive heating assemblies and one or more inductive heatingassemblies. In various implementations, the control body may alsoinclude further components, including an electrical power source (suchas a battery), components for actuating current flow into the heatingmember, and components for regulating such current flow to maintain adesired temperature for a desired time and/or to cycle current flow orstop current flow when a desired temperature has been reached or theheating member has been heating for a desired length of time. In someimplementations, the control unit further may comprise one or morepushbuttons associated with one or both of the components for actuatingcurrent flow into the heating member, and the components for regulatingsuch current flow. The control body may also include one or moreindicators, such as lights indicating the heater is heating and/orindicating the number of puffs remaining for an aerosol source memberthat is used with the control body.

Although some figures described herein illustrate the control body andaerosol source member in a working relationship, it is understood thatthe control body and the aerosol source member may exist as individualdevices. Accordingly, any discussion otherwise provided herein inrelation to the components in combination also should be understood asapplying to the control body and the aerosol source member as individualand separate components.

In another aspect, the present disclosure may be directed to kits thatprovide a variety of components as described herein. For example, a kitmay comprise a control body with one or more aerosol source members. Akit may further comprise a control body with one or more chargingcomponents. A kit may further comprise a control body with one or morebatteries. A kit may further comprise a control body with one or moreaerosol source members and one or more charging components and/or one ormore batteries. In further implementations, a kit may comprise aplurality of aerosol source members. A kit may further comprise aplurality of aerosol source members and one or more batteries and/or oneor more charging components. In the above implementations, the aerosolsource members or the control bodies may be provided with a heatingmember inclusive thereto. The inventive kits may further include a case(or other packaging, carrying, or storage component) that accommodatesone or more of the further kit components. The case could be a reusablehard or soft container. Further, the case could be simply a box or otherpackaging structure.

Many modifications and other embodiments of the disclosure will come tomind to one skilled in the art to which this disclosure pertains havingthe benefit of the teachings presented in the foregoing descriptions andthe associated drawings. Therefore, it is to be understood that thedisclosure is not to be limited to the specific embodiments disclosedherein and that modifications and other embodiments are intended to beincluded within the scope of the appended claims. Although specificterms are employed herein, they are used in a generic and descriptivesense only and not for purposes of limitation.

1. An aerosol source member for use with an induction heated aerosoldelivery device having a resonant transmitter, the aerosol source membercomprising: a plurality of granules comprising a mixture of: a fibrousfiller material; an aerosol forming material; and a plurality of heatconducting constituents, wherein the plurality of heat conductingconstituents comprise a resonant receiver configured to exhibit analternating current when exposed to an oscillating magnetic field fromthe resonant transmitter.
 2. The aerosol source member of claim 1,wherein the aerosol source member further comprises a binder material.3. The aerosol source member of claim 1, wherein the form of the heatconducting constituents comprises at least one of a granular form, apowder form, a fiber form, a mesh form, and a fiber cloth form.
 4. Theaerosol source member of claim 1, wherein the material of the heatconducting constituents comprises one or more of a metal material, ametal alloy material, a ceramic material, a carbon material, a polymericfiber material coated with a metal material, and combinations thereof.5. The aerosol source member of claim 1, wherein the plurality of heatconducting constituents comprises at least one of a metal mesh laminateand a metal fiber cloth laminate.
 6. The aerosol source member of claim1, wherein the fibrous filler material comprises at least one of atobacco material and a tobacco-derived material.
 7. The aerosol sourcemember of claim 1, wherein the fibrous filler material comprises anon-tobacco material.
 8. An induction heating aerosol generation system,the system comprising: an aerosol source member comprising: a pluralityof granules comprising a mixture of: a fibrous filler material; anaerosol forming material; and a plurality of heat conductingconstituents; and a control unit that includes a resonant transmitter,wherein the plurality of heat conducting constituents comprise aresonant receiver configured to exhibit an alternating current whenexposed to an oscillating magnetic field from the resonant transmitterof the control unit.
 9. The induction heating aerosol generation systemof claim 8, wherein the substrate portion further comprises a bindermaterial.
 10. The induction heating aerosol generation system of claim8, wherein the form of the heat conducting constituents comprises atleast one of a granular form, a powder form, a fiber form, a mesh form,and a fiber cloth form.
 11. The induction heating aerosol generationsystem of claim 8, wherein the material of the heat conductingconstituents comprises one or more of a metal material, a metal alloymaterial, a ceramic material, a carbon material, a polymeric fibermaterial coated with a metal material, and combinations thereof.
 12. Theinduction heating aerosol generation system of claim 8, wherein theplurality of heat conducting constituents comprises at least one of ametal mesh laminate and a metal fiber cloth laminate.
 13. The inductionheating aerosol generation system of claim 8, wherein the fibrous fillermaterial comprises at least one of a tobacco material and atobacco-derived material.
 14. The induction heating aerosol generationsystem of claim 8, wherein the fibrous filler material comprises anon-tobacco material.
 15. The induction heating aerosol generationsystem of claim 8, wherein the control body includes a separate resonantreceiver located therein.